


Ctrl Z

by RayneAuster



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014)
Genre: Alive Tadashi, Angst, Drama, Other, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-22
Updated: 2016-11-16
Packaged: 2018-05-22 16:20:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 46
Words: 118,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6086472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RayneAuster/pseuds/RayneAuster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Slamming the palms of his hands down onto the washbasin he took a deep breath, hanging his head for a few seconds in fear before slowly raising it to meet his own reflection in the mirror. His breath escaped him in a hiss, his earlier shock a mere shadow in comparison to the force of the new blow that struck him when his gaze met the wide eyed stare of his fourteen year old self.</p><p>Not many people get a second chance to make things right. Fewer still get a third or fourth. When Hiro is given a second chance to save his brother he finds out that second chances are not what they are cracked up to be.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Phoenix Rising

**Phoenix Rising**

_Heat…_

_Glowing embers…_

_And flickering flames…_

_He was trapped, surrounded by dancing demons that crept ever closer with each ragged breath he took._

_Pain…_

_Shards of glass sliding down his throat…_

_Tearing…_

_Cutting…_

_Shredding the fragile skin within to settle deep within his lungs, robbing him of the very air he needed to survive. His lungs were burning, the burn a sharp icy contradiction to the heat that threatened to use his skin as fuel, rejoicing at the chance to devour him._

_"… hiss… crackle… zzzzz… ro….. crackle.. Hi…. Hiss… ro!... re… there?" Snippets of Gogo's conversation made their way through to him, her panic and fear clearly audible even through the broken communications. She was looking for him, desperate to find him. She was planning to rescue him but there was nothing she could do._

_He was trapped, locked in a burning building with no way out and there was nothing he or anyone else could do about it._

_"Gogo…" He whispered. The words tore the wounds in his throat even further open fighting past ash, dust and heat to escape all not no avail. They were barely audible as they escaped his parched lips and were all too soon swallowed by the crackle of the hungry flames that had come to claim his life._

_Dots…_

_Darkness flickered before his eyes…_

_Heavy pressure upon his chest..._

_He was suffocating, his body deprived of life giving air despite the heavy pants that shook his slim form. He was dying. He knew he was dying. The fire was hungrily consuming his precious oxygen and replacing it with carbon dioxide and even though he intimately understood the chemical reaction that was fueling it, there was nothing he could do to stop it._

_He was dying… That much was certain. It was as inescapable as the fire that had taken his brother from him two and a half years ago. What hadn't been determined yet was whether he would he succumb to the toxic gases permeating the air before the angry flames consumed him whole._

_"Hiro!... where… crackle… you!" Gogo was still looking for him… "Hiss…swer…hiss… damnit…"_

_"Gogo…" He tried one last time, the ragged whisper echoing softly in his own ears… He was alone, lost in a sea of pain and confusion, his mind fighting to make sense of things that had made sense mere moments before. "Tell Aunt Cass…" He licked dry lips. He was so very thirsty… Why was he so very thirsty? Had he forgotten to drink something? "Tell Aunt Cass…" Why would he have forgotten something so basic? "…I love her." He should be smarter than that… right?_

_Pain…_

_Scorching heat began to eat away at his skin… tearing him apart…_

_The fire was claiming him before the toxic gases could, breaking his mind even as the dancing flames consumed his flesh… tearing an agonized scream from his throat…_

"Hi… hiss… Hi… crackle… snap… ro… Hi… ro… Hiro! Come on Hiro! Snap out of it!" An all too familiar voice came sharply into focus, the familiar scent of soldered circuits, greased metal and baked goods replacing the all too recent scent of burning fabrics, scorched skin and toxic fumes. Did he just teleport? But that wasn't possible. Project silent sparrow was the closest anyone had ever gotten to transporting anything instantaneously across space and everyone knew how that had ended.

"Come on Hiro! This isn't funny!" A hint of panic crept into the all too familiar voice, firing receptors in Hiro's brain that hadn't been fired in far too long. It simply didn't make sense. _He_ was supposed to be dead. They both were.

"Hiro! You're starting to scare me!" The level of panic directed him increased, reminding him of the panic he could hear in Gogo's voice as she desperately searched for him in the fire. Ghostly aches and pains coursed through his nerves, briefly flaring them to life, his mind struggling to separate two very different realities. In one… he was dying, agony coursing through every fiber of his being and in the other… in the other he was…

"Aunt Cass! Get the car!" He was floating, cradled in all too familiar arms, a comforting scent he'd all but forgotten permeating the air around him urging him to burrow into the familiar warmth that had once been his place of comfort.

"Tadashi… what going on?" Aunt Cass's voice drifted up from the café, concern apparent in her tone.

"We need to go to the hospital!" Tadashi called back down, the familiar rumble of his deep voice, reverberating through Hiro's bones, chasing away the last memories of the hell he'd just endured. "I can't get Hiro to wake up!"

Aunt Cass released a worried gasp and rushed away. The sound of rustling keys was followed by the sound of café door bell, shuffling feet and whispered apologies. Aunt Cass was apologizing to clients as she asked them to leave, telling each that she unfortunately had to close the café early. Wait… Aunt Cass was closing the café?! Why was she doing that?

Rewind.

She was worried… about him…

Rewind some more.

Because Tadashi has told her he can't wake Hiro up.

Hiro's eyes flew open and the world came crashing in. Bright familiar colour swirled around from high above moving past him even though logically he shouldn't be moving. Not under his own power anyway. The sound of car horns, bicycle bells and chattering pedestrians drew ever closer, confirming the message his eyes had already communicated and through it all his mind continued to race, seeking, attempting to gather information, even going so far as to grasp at straws in an attempt to explain that which could not be explained.

"Ta… Tada-nii?!" The shocked exclamation slipped past his lips before he could even attempt to reconsider his course of action, escaping the inner turmoil of his mind to make its presence known to the outside world and with it to draw his brother's full attention back to him.

"Well, good morning, bonehead." Tadashi greeted him softly, his entire posture softening in relief even as he continued to watch his brother in concern. "You seriously had me worried there." Tadashi leaned down to rest his forehead on Hiro's, the casual familiarity of the gesture a sharp stab to Hiro's heart. Tadashi was taking Hiro's temperature, calmly measuring it against his own even as he continued to carry Hiro down into the café.

And Hiro… Hiro's mind had encountered a fatal error and was in the process of rebooting. Impossible. The scene playing out before him was impossible to comprehend. All of the facts that lay before him simply did not compute and he had no decent logic to fall back on. Except for… "Am I dead?"

It would appear that his mind to mouth filter had failed him yet again, revealing more than he intended under the circumstances before him. He really shouldn't be revealing his own state of mind before he had fully evaluated the situation he found himself in. His tendency to blurt out everything that came to mind was a bad habit that used to get him into a lot of trouble way back when… before Tadashi died. He thought he'd managed to reign in the tendency somewhat… managed to mature past it… apparently he was mistaken.

Tadashi raised his head and frowned down at him, concern and worry still clearly visible in his dark brown eyes. "No, bonehead. You're not dead just yet though you do seem to be running a high fever." The café doorbell rang one more time as Tadashi stepped out into the sunlight, still cradling Hiro in his arms.

So here were the facts that Hiro's mind could confirm:

1) If Tadashi was to be believed, Hiro was not dead

2) Tadashi probably wasn't the best source of that kind of information since _Tadashi was dead_

3) Hiro was back at the café even though the last clear memories he had before he'd been consumed by pain were of a warehouse he and the team had been investigating. The building had exploded shortly after he'd entered it, separating him from the rest of the team and trapping him inside. Entering an abandoned mess of a building that has been marked for demolition had probably not been his brightest decision to date

4) Hiro should be dead. The memories of the flames consuming his flesh and the intense agony that had coursed through him were still fresh in his mind and the heat of it all was still present in his veins… Or was that perhaps the fever Tadashi was referring to?

5) He was in Tadashi's arms, surrounded by his all too familiar strength and dependability. The sheer enormity of the situation was too ridiculous to comprehend let alone make sense of yet there was no denying that it was fact

6) Tadashi was carrying him to Aunt Cass' car which she'd pulled out because Tadashi had told her they needed to take Hiro to the hospital. Wait… What?!

"No!" Hiro burst into motion, suddenly desperate to escape his brother's arms and stand on his own two feet. "We can't! No hospital!"

"Hiro, stop it!" Tadashi cried out, instinctively shifting his grip in reaction to the suddenly squirming boy. "You're going to make me drop you."

"I'm not going to hospital!" Hiro insisted, attempting to shove Tadashi away in order to force his brother to let him go. Something was wrong… Something was very wrong with this entire situation and there was no way he could explain it to himself, let alone a bunch of strangers whose highlight of their day would be to stick things into him, part him of life giving fluid and fire a bunch of awkward questions at him all in the name of medical science. Unfortunately for him, his efforts were in vein. The fire in his veins flared up, rushed to his head and caused his world to spin, leaving Hiro to cling to the lapel of Tadashi's cardigan in a desperate bid to ground himself once more.

"It's ok, bonehead." Tadashi whispered, cradling Hiro close once more. Carefully shifting his body, he slid into Aunt Cass' car and settled Hiro on his lap. "I won't let anyone hurt you." The passage door closed with a soft click and the car slid smoothly into motion. "I'll be there every step of the way. I'll always protect you. I promise."

Tadashi's whispered promise broke Hiro's heart for he knew… He knew it was a promise Tadashi wouldn't be able to keep.


	2. Fire and Ice

**Fire and Ice**

The hospital visit had _not_ been fun. It had been every bit as invasive as he had originally feared. He'd been poked, prodded, pricked and interrogated. Thankfully the interrogation had ended rather quickly. That probably had more to do with the fact that he'd insisted he was dead than anything else. The doctors were blaming the fever for that but Hiro knew better. He had died in that fire and in doing so transported himself into this strange reality that he was still struggling to comprehend. He didn't know how it was possible but there had to be an explanation somewhere. He just needed time to find it.

As promised, Tadashi had remained by his side throughout the ordeal. Not surprising seeing as Tadashi always did have a protective streak a mile wide when it came to Hiro's well-being. It was too bad he had inherited said protective streak at the expense of his sense of self-preservation. The idiot had run straight into a fire to save someone who didn't even need saving and died in the process!

Wait…

How was that any different to the level of stupidity that had gotten Hiro killed two and a half years later? It wasn't really. Ten Points to the power of genetics. Looked like some things ran in the family...

What did that say about the Hamada gene-pool?

Perhaps not a question he should be contemplating too deeply at this stage seeing as he had other more pressing issues to address.

"Happy now, bonehead?" Tadashi lifted Hiro into his arms, slipping out of the car in a complete reversal of the actions he'd taken earlier. A cool breeze caressed Hiro's overheated skin providing a momentary reprieve from the heat continued to threaten to consume him from within. "We're home just like you wanted."

The shift in space caused by Tadashi lifting him into his arms brought on a bout of dizziness that forced Hiro to clench his eyes closed and cling to the fabric of Tadashi's cardigan once more. Oh, how the mighty had fallen. Last he checked, he was a hero, a protector of justice, willing to sacrifice his own life to protect others all in loving memory of the brother that had done the same. Then he'd made a mistake, a single reckless decision that had sealed his fate…

Why had he stepped into that building in the first place?

Oh yeah, he'd thought he'd heard a cry for help…

"You can't fool me, Hiro." Tadashi reprimanded him softly even as he shifted Hiro in his arms in order to settle him into a more secure position before making his way back into the café. "I know you're still awake. If you're trying to be difficult, you certainly succeeded." Tadashi began to climb the stairs.

The shift in motion brought on a fresh wave of dizziness which Hiro chose to ignore, as much as he could that is. He remained silent for a moment longer and waited for it to settle before responding to Tadashi's prompts. There was, after all, no point in revealing just how far gone he really was. It would just make Tadashi worry and the last thing Hiro wanted to do was make his brother worry. "'m not tryin' to be difficult." He murmured into Tadashi's chest muffling some of the words. "Jus' don' wanna stay in hospital."

"The fit you threw at the mere suggestion made that more than abundantly clear." Tadashi's reply was dry, wry humour and affection colouring the words even though they were intended to be a gentle reprimand.

"They keep poking me." Hiro complained, shifting to peer up at his brother. He pouted, giving Tadashi his most miserable puppy dog face. The look was designed to melt Tadashi's heart and get Hiro exactly what he wanted with minimum fuss. It was an expression he hadn't used in years… not since life forced him to grow up… not since Tadashi died… Yet here he was sliding back into the habit as if he'd never dropped it. Old habits, died hard.

"If you think I'm not going to do the same simply because you have that expression in your arsenal of tricks, you are sorely mistaken." Tadashi informed him, walking right past Hiro's bed and into the bathroom.

Wait… what? Why was Tadashi taking him to the bathroom instead of the bed?

Kneeling down, Tadashi placed Hiro onto the ground beside the bath before leaning over to plug the bath and turn on the tap. Satisfied that the water was running, he turned his attention back to Hiro and began to take off his clothes.

Wait… What? Tadashi was taking off his clothes?! Tadashi was intending to…

The thought didn't even have time to fully formulate when Tadashi confirmed Hiro's worst suspicions by lifting him up once more. Tadashi intended to drop him into the bath and there was no way Hiro was going to take _that_ lying down. That water was _cold_! He didn't need to feel it to know that. He was more than intelligent enough to add two and two and come up with four! Not about to give in without a fight he promptly proceeded to squirm in Tadashi's grasp, using Tadashi clothes as leverage to climb up his brother's body in a bid to escape. Unfortunately for him, he'd used this trick before.

"Oh no you don't." Tadashi reacted swiftly, catching hold of Hiro even before he really had a chance to get away. Tugging softly, he easily pried Hiro off of him and promptly dropped him into the bath with a resounding splash that disturbed the water just enough to wet every single inch of Hiro's body in a single foul swoop.

If there was one thing Hiro had unshakable faith in, it was the power of his own deductive reasoning. And as usual, it did not fail him. The water _was_ cold. Deeply affronted by the manner in which he had been manhandled into his current affliction, he proceeded to direct the dirtiest look he could muster at Tadashi.

Regrettably, Tadashi's deductive reasoning was not as sound as Hiro's own and he completely missed the memo. "Don't you even think about moving." Tadashi turned the tap off before getting up to leave the bathroom. Instead of shrivelling beneath the heat of Hiro's glare, Tadashi was ordering him about, seemingly oblivious to the discomfort he had just caused. The nerve! Hiro opened his mouth, fully intending to give him a piece of his mind only…

The opportunity had completely passed him by.

He was alone once more, shivering miserably in a bathtub full of cold water, stray drops sliding down strands of his hair to land solidly on his nose. If that wasn't the perfect picture of abject misery, Hiro didn't know what was.

Fortunately or unfortunately for him, depending on how one looked at it, Tadashi didn't give him much time alone to sulk. He returned mere moments later bearing a bucket filled with ice.

WAIT! NO!

"HEY!" Hiro jumped what had to be a mile high when Tadashi emptied said bucket directly on top of him. "What the hell was that for?!"

"Language, Hiro." Tadashi reprimanded him softly, kneeling to push Hiro firmly back into the now _ICY COLD_ water, completely unfazed by the stray splatters that sloshed out to soak his dark brown pants.

Note to self: Retrain Tadashi. Current responses to pinkie wrapping techniques are lacking. This was by _no_ means an acceptable state of affairs.

"It's cold." Hiro whined in protest, reverting back to miserable puppy mode.

"It's supposed to be." Tadashi replied, holding Hiro firmly down. "You only have yourself to thank for this. Lacking the medication and equipment they have for this at the hospital, this is the only way we're going to break your fever."

There it was, the catch 22. Why was there always a catch 22?

"Why can't we just get Baymax to cool me down?" Hiro complained, a particularly violent shiver coursing through him, the sensation not quite as unpleasant as his mind was telling him it should be. The coolness of the ice on his heated skin was actually rather agreeable but he wasn't about to tell Tadashi that. Admitting that Tadashi was right about something was synonymous to admitting Hiro was wrong and Hiro was never wrong. He had a genius IQ to prove it.

Tadashi tensed. His reaction was a clear indication that Hiro's mouth had once again gotten him into trouble bringing Hiro's thoughts back to recurring theme that seemed to sum up his entire day thus far: He really needed to work on that mind to mouth filter. Perhaps tweak his brain to focus on the primary task at hand instead of running off on tangents it had no business messing with? Who was he kidding? Hiro had a better chance of creating a snow blizzard on the hottest day of the year than reining in the runaway trains that were his thoughts.

"How do you know about Baymax?" Tadashi asked, dark brown eyes carefully scrutinizing Hiro's face, seeming to search for hidden answers to questions Hiro was more than willing to answer truthfully. Questions Hiro really should be giving deeper thought to before addressing but hey, who was counting… fever was a fantastic truth serum and Hiro was drunk on it. Okay more like spaced out and still in denial about the entire situation but that was neither here nor there.

"You showed him to me." Hiro declared lifting his right arm out of the water to point at his forearm. "Using a piece of duct tape as an illustrative tactic. Not very nice of you, you know. It stung like a **** when you pulled it off."

"Language Hiro." Tadashi repeated, the response automatic and absent minded. His mind was clearly focused on other matters. "When did I do that?"

"Right after Aunt Cass sprung us free from jail."

"I see. Why, exactly, were we in jail, then?" Tadashi's response was heavy with skepticism and it was clear that he was beginning to shift gears. Initially honestly confused, Tadashi was now merely going along with Hiro's story in a bid to keep him calm. The switch in tactics was clear as day, even to Hiro's fever ravaged mind but Hiro didn't care. He was telling the truth. Whether Tadashi believed him or not was beyond his control at this stage.

"We got caught bot fighting." Hiro declared, a wide grin spread across his face. If there ever was a topic capable of completely getting under Tadashi's skin, bot-fighting was it.

Tadashi scowled, unable to hide his distaste for the topic even when faced with his younger brother's delusional fever induced ramblings. "I wouldn't be caught dead bot fighting." Tadashi retorted, scooping up several handfuls of icy cold water and pouring them over Hiro's head in a bid to cool him down further. "Bot fighting is illegal."

"Bot fighting is not illegal. Betting on bot fights that… that's illegal." Hiro retorted, suddenly beset by a horrible sense of Déjà vu. Surely he'd already lived this conversation before? "And you weren't exactly bot fighting at the time. You were busy rescuing me from being beaten to a pulp by a bunch of bot fighters I had just conned out of their money."

"Hiro!" Tadashi exclaimed. "You told me you didn't bet on bot fights!"

"And you believed me?"

"I wanted to but no." Tadashi admitted with a heavy sigh, picking up a few ice cubes and throwing them into Hiro's head in retaliation. "I may be naive when it comes to these things but I know you better than that, knucklehead. So we got arrested because you were participating in illegal activities and I was aiding and abetting your crime?"

Hiro giggled. Aiding and abetting… how very… Tadashi. Figured his brother would have access to legal jargon in his vocabulary. "No. We got arrested because I was betting on bot fights and raking in the cash and you were the driver of my escape vehicle." Hiro clarified, just to be difficult.

"I see." Tadashi repeated, quirking an eyebrow in response to the manic grin Hiro was now directing at him. It was more than apparent he didn't believe a single word Hiro was saying but wasn't about to give up the game. "I assume your run in with the law scared you straight?"

Hiro gave Tadashi a look. Come on now. His brother knew him far better than that. "Are you kidding? I was planning on going to another bot fight right after we got out and you…" Hiro paused a sudden mischievous spark coursing through him. "You agreed to take me!"

"Now _that_ I find hard to believe." Tadashi declared reaching into the icy cold water to pull Hiro out, wrapping the shivering boy in a large fluffy towel before carrying him back into the bedroom where he proceeded to dry him vigorously before proceeding to cloth him in his pajamas.

Hiro waited until Tadashi was done before lying down in his brother's lap and wrapping his arms around his waist. "You may find it difficult to believe but it's true." He whispered into Tadashi's stomach just before closing his eyes to slip into the darkness that had been beckoning him all day.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to clarify (in case anyone is confused), I am writing this story from Hiro's perspective so most of the pieces in between are actually references to things Hiro is thinking. I don't know why this story has taken this tone but it is in essence a story that is being told from a first person perspective but is written as if it were third person. Also, I have absolutely no idea where all this dry humor is coming from. I'm seriously enjoying this so far even if it is turning out to be insanely difficult to write. Hiro's mind is a tad overwhelming at times.


	3. Perpetuate

**Perpetuate**

Thud.

The first thing Hiro's brain registered was the sound of a glass connecting with the wooden surface of the side table beside his bed. He ignored the sound burrowing deeper into the comforting warmth of his blankets. That wasn't enough to really pull him from his slumber. The second thing it registered was the scent of food… crispy, fried, oily goodness permeating the air with the most wonderful god given aroma he'd ever encountered. Now _that_ was how you were _supposed_ to wake someone.

His eyes snapped open to find Tadashi, sitting at his desk, holding a plate piled high with crispy bacon, friend eggs and toast. "Fooood!" Hiro was ravenous. He wanted it, all of it, in his hands, in his mouth and in his stomach. There was nothing he wanted more in that instant. "Gimme, Gimme!" He demanded, sitting up and reaching for the plate, his mouth already watering in anticipation.

Tadashi blinked at him in surprise before obediently handing him the plate. Good brother. Looked like he didn't need as much retraining as Hiro feared. Hiro snatched said plate the moment it connected with his hand and began to devour its contents, not even bothering to use the cutlery lined up neatly on the side.

"You might want to breathe between bites, there." Tadashi cautioned him. It was meant to be a reprimand but the accompanying amusement that colored the words ruined any impact it might have otherwise had.

"'m 'ungry." Hiro retorted between bites, not even bothering to chew his food properly before shoving more into his mouth. Who had time to chew when raging hunger called?

"I can see that." Tadashi leaned back in his chair before picking up a bowl of soup. "Not eating for three days can do that to you."

Wait… He hadn't eaten for three days?

Hiro blinked momentarily pausing his mission to wipe everything off the plate in the shortest time possible, in favor of processing _that_ new tidbit of information. "Thwee dayz?" The exclamation was muffled by the food still in his mouth. Just how out of it had he been that he'd managed to miss three days? Wait… did time still apply when one was dead?

Tadashi leaned forward and used a finger to close Hiro's mouth that had dropped open in surprise. "Chew, swallow and _then_ speak." He instructed before leaning back to resume eating his own food.

Hiro frowned, but complied, chewing and swallowing the food in his mouth to resume eating at a more controlled pace. With the worst of his hunger abated, he now had time to address the strange puzzle his mind had been struggling to comprehend. "You know…" Hiro paused, taking a moment to swallow the last of the food in his mouth before continuing. "Being dead isn't all that different to being alive."

Tadashi scowled, dropping the spoon he'd been using back into the bowl, concern and frustration reflected in his eyes. "You're not dead, Hiro. I'll admit, it was touch and go there for a while but we finally managed to break your fever last night."

"But I died." Hiro declared, taking a huge bite out of the bacon in his hand before waving it about in illustration. "Stupidly. In a burning building. Just like you. Turns out I was more like you than I thought." Hiro couldn't quite control the mild thread of bitterness that entered his tone at the realization. Tadashi had always been his idol. He was calm, kind and always knew what to say and do to make things better. Except for that one time. Hiro had always wished he could be more like him. Dying in a burning building because of his own idiocy, however, had not been what he had in mind.

"You're not dead." Tadashi repeated, leaning forward to rest a hand on Hiro's forehead. The gesture was clearly meant to check if Hiro's fever had returned, even though it quickly changed to Tadashi ruffling his hair. "That must have been some nightmare you had, knucklehead. Probably brought on by your fever."

"It wasn't a nightmare." Hiro snapped, pushing Tadashi's hand away all while aiming a fierce scowl at his brother. Tadashi's refusal to believe anything he said had been rather entertaining at first but it was starting to get really old, really fast. How was he supposed to enjoy this reunion when Tadashi refused to acknowledge they had been separated in the first place? "I was there! I lived it! I watched you run into a burning building to save someone that didn't even need to be saved to begin with! I was thrown back by the explosion that followed! I attended your funeral and watched everyone grieve all while trying to pretend my world hadn't ended with you and then I picked up the pieces!" Hiro paused to take deep panting breaths in a bid to regain just the tiniest sliver of control.

Why?

Why did it still hurt so much?

The blood was pounding in his head, beating a rapid rhythm in tune with the elevated beat of his heart. His hands were clenched, tendons showing in reaction to the force he was exerting on the plate he was still holding… a plate which surprisingly enough did not break. His breathing was shallow, labored and harsh and his head spun in reaction to the sudden onslaught of emotion that appeared to rise up from seemingly nowhere: desperation, grief and the echoes of remembered pain, both emotional and physical seeming to merge the grief he'd experienced when he lost Tadashi with the agony he'd endured in his own burning hell, two and a half years later.

"Hi… pant…. Pant… gasp… ro… pant… pant… Hiro."

Hiro's name filtered clearly once more into his conscience, pulling him away from the nightmares conjured by his mind and back into a reality that could only be the very antithesis of real. "Don't you Hiro me." Hiro snarled, picking up where he'd left off. "You're the one that left me and now you're trying to tell me it never happened? I did what you wanted. I went to nerd school, got a degree, okay, technically I'm only two and a half years in and was _going_ to get the degree in six months but close enough, created a super hero team and dedicated myself to saving people all because it's what you would have _wanted_ and now you're telling me it was all just a dream? That I've somehow managed to conjure up two and a half years of my life all in the span of three fever ravaged days? How do you explain that? It's just not physically or scientifically possible!" Hiro challenged, glaring at Tadashi.

Tadashi blinked at him, mildly terrified by Hiro's outburst. It was more than apparent that he was feeling a little out of his depth but in typical Tadashi fashion, he simply changed gears and tried his best to deal with the situation anyway. "Hiro." He repeated in a calm tone that was clearly meant to soothe Hiro's agitation. "I can't explain how you came up with such a detailed story in three days. Nor can I explain your adamant conviction that it happened but I can tell you it couldn't have happened. You just graduated high school a year ago. You haven't enrolled into college yet, let alone spent two and a half years on a degree but there's nothing that says you couldn't do it now if you wanted to?"

"Don't tell me it couldn't have happened when…" Hiro swallowed the rest of his sentence when his brain finally caught up with his mouth and actually processed the rest of Tadashi's statement. "Wait… I just graduated high school a year ago?"

Tadashi smiled and reached over to ruffle Hiro's hair again. "We all know you could have finished it sooner if not for all the other drama but graduating at thirteen is still quite the solid achievement you know."

"Thirteen? I graduated a year ago when I was thirteen?" The question slipped out before Hiro could even think to try and stop it. His mind to mouth filter was completely malfunctioning, shattered by this new revelation. How was it possible that he'd only graduated high school a year ago when he'd graduated at thirteen and was currently only a few months short of turning seventeen? "Then that would mean I'm…" He paused, his mind rapidly doing the math, repeating it and repeating it again in utter disbelief at the only conclusion it could reach. "That would mean I'm currently fourteen years old."

"Would you look at that?" Tadashi teased, using a forefinger to flick Hiro on the forehead. "The genius can perform basic arithmetic. Seriously Hiro, of course you're fourteen. How old did you think you were?"

Sixteen…He thought he was sixteen.

Hiro did not give voice to the stray thought that filtered through his mind in response to Tadashi's question too shell shocked to access his vocal chords let alone use them to clearly communicate something that made no sense at all. How was it even possible?

Hiro pulled back his bedding and leaped out of bed and rushed towards the bathroom before Tadashi even had a chance to protest, let alone react.

It couldn't be true. It wasn't possible. Tadashi had to be mistaken.

Slamming the palms of his hands down onto the washbasin he took a deep breath, hanging his head for a few seconds in fear before slowly raising it to meet his own reflection in the mirror. His breath escaped him in a hiss, his earlier shock a mere shadow in comparison to the force of the new blow that struck him when his gaze met the wide eyed stare of his fourteen year old self.

_Look at things from a different angle._

Suddenly the pieces began to fall into place, forcing Hiro to draw a conclusion every bit as fantastical as Tadashi's theory that he'd dreamed up two and a half years of his own life in a mere three days. His first conclusion had been a mistake. Hiro had not died as he originally believed… he had traveled back in time, instead!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure if anyone made the connection but Hiro is devouring what was meant to be Tadashi's breakfast in this chapter, leaving Tadashi to eat the soup that was meant for Hiro. XD XD XD


	4. Commixture

**Commixture**

"Come on kiddo." Tadashi announced walking confidently into the room as if nothing were amiss, completely ruining Hiro's attempt to hide from the world and everybody in it. Hiro's mind had been racing a mile a minute ever since that morning when he'd first come face to face with the impossible and he wasn't exactly in the mood for what was obviously one of Tadashi's ploys to make him feel better. "We're going out." Tadashi continued, obviously not reading the mood in the room, instead choosing to reach into the closet in order to throw on one of his trademark cardigans.

Hiro pushed his bedding down and peered out from beneath the pile of fabric he'd taken refuge in and quirked an eyebrow at Tadashi. "You sure that's a good idea? What with me still recovering from that horrible mind altering fever and all?" He asked, not above playing the most effective card he currently had in his hand. Tadashi's over protective streak did occasionally have its uses.

"Your fever broke last night and you've had all day to recover." Tadashi declared turning to hold out a pair long cargo pants, a bright red T-shirt and Hiro's favorite dark blue hoodie. "If we bundle you up nice and warm, I'm sure you'll be ok."

Ok… so Hiro's last ditch effort to get out of whatever it was Tadashi was planning was an epic fail and had not even made it out of the starting gate, let alone onto the race track. That left him with only one other option. Honesty. "I don't want to." Hiro replied, shortly, flopping back down onto the bed and pulling the bedding up and over his head. His reply was petulant but he didn't care. He had a headache from all the time he'd just spent trying to figure out how his present state of affairs was even remotely possible and wasn't up to dealing with Tadashi's creative schemes. The fact that he'd failed to even come up with a theory to further investigate, certainly did not help matters much.

"Come on, you big baby." Tadashi walked over towards Hiro's bed and pulled the bedding away, once again exposing Hiro to the world he was currently trying really hard to ignore. "It's not that bad."

"Says you." Hiro retorted reaching up to snatch the bedding back only to be left empty handed when Tadashi moved it out of his reach. "Tadashi! Stop it"

"I'll stop it when you stop acting like a child."

"I'll act like a child if I want to!" Hiro sat up and reached for his bedding again. "If I have to go through puberty again, the least I could get out of it is the right to act like a child. It's only fair, don't you think?" He missed. He'd completely misjudged the distance and ended up making a swipe that didn't even require Tadashi to pull the fabric further out of reach.

Tadashi blinked.

Hiro recalculated and leaned further forward, finally managing to grab the stray fabric.

Wait…

Why had Tadashi not pulled the bedding out of his reach, again?

Hiro slowly shifted his focus from the bedding, back towards his brother, afraid of what he might see. Tadashi was standing beside his bed, staring him in shock but the most surprising sight of all was the tell-tale red flush on his cheeks. "Are you blushing?" Hiro blurted out the words, not quite sure what to make of situation. Tadashi was a rock, a solid calming force that always remained steady and firm, even when buffered by a raging storm. Flustered was not an emotion he should be capable of feeling. Neither was embarrassed. Only…

Tadashi's blush brightened, moving from his cheeks all the way up to cover his ears, setting his entire face alight. Tadashi _was_ indeed blushing and the reality of it brought home the fact that despite spending his entire life with his brother, there might be a side to Tadashi that Hiro did not know.

"You _are_ blushing!" Hiro exclaimed in disbelief.

Tadashi coughed and dropped the bedding. The fabric shifted and fell to the floor, sliding out of Hiro's grasp as well to land, forgotten by the wayside. "Has Aunt Cass... cough… um… you know…" Tadashi floundered, reaching up to rest his hand the back of his own neck awkwardly, all while doing his best to avoid Hiro's gaze.

"Has Aunt Cass, what?" Hiro asked cautiously, not really sure what he was walking into. What on earth had gotten into Tadashi and what did Aunt Cass have to do with it? His heart suddenly made its way into his throat. Was Tadashi trying to give him some kind of bad news?!

"You know…" Tadashi coughed again before shifting to sit down beside Hiro, finally turning to face him. His usually warm brown eyes were filled with concern intermingled with the embarrassment that still had him firmly in its grip, "… had _the talk_ with you?"

Hiro blinked.

His brain hit an unhandled exception and proceeded to reboot momentarily shutting off his still malfunctioning brain to mouth filter. "The talk?" Hiro parroted, filling the empty space between them while he waited for his brain to start up once again.

Hiro didn't think it was humanly possible but apparently it was. Tadashi's blush grew even more vivid, turning his entire face fire engine red. "You know… the birds and the bees." Tadashi tried again.

Brain failed to start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause. If Brain files have been damaged or configured incorrectly, Startup Repair can help diagnose and fix the problem. If power was interrupted during startup, choose Start Brain Normally…

Tadashi sighed and ran a hand down over his face before taking a deep breath. "Puberty is characterized by an increase in hormone and neurotransmitter levels that often cause mood swings and an increase in body hair, especially on your face, chest, armpits and… well, you know."

"What?"

Loading…

"You may also experience strange and powerful new urges…" Tadashi continued completely oblivious to the fatal crash Hiro's brain was trying to recover from.

Logged in successfully.

Hiro couldn't _believe_ what he was hearing! Tadashi was trying to give him the talk Baymax had given him upon first activating after Tadashi's death. Down to the very last detail. Which should have made sense seeing as Tadashi was the one that created Baymax in the first place only it didn't. _Tadashi_ was not supposed to be the one giving him this talk. Especially since he was more than two years past the beginning if _that_ phase!

"Ok! Ok! Stop!" Hiro exclaimed, throwing himself at his brother before any more damage could be done. He shoved a hand onto Tadashi's mouth essentially muffling the rest of what he was going to say. "I'll go with you. I'll get dressed and we can go do whatever you want just please… _please_ stop speaking!" Hiro begged, jumping out of bed in order to keep up his end of the bargain he was currently in the process of striking. "I'll get dressed, all nice and warm and you can drag me out to wherever it is you want to take me and we can forget this…" Hiro used the hand not on Tadashi's mouth to point at Tadashi, then himself, then Tadashi… "conversation never happened, ok?"

Silence descended upon the room, Hiro's breath catching in the back of his throat as he anxiously waited for his brother to agree.

_Tick…. Tick… tick…_

Five agonizing minutes passed them by, each tick of the clock beyond excruciating in the time it took Tadashi's mind to process Hiro's words and then it was finally over. Tadashi nodded in agreement and Hiro released him, snatching up his clothes and rushing off to the bathroom in order to get dressed.

In private.

Away from Tadashi's prying eyes while his brother was still too preoccupied with his own embarrassment to notice the bright red flushed skin on Hiro's face. Knowing his overprotective brother, Tadashi would probably be under the mistaken impression that Hiro's fever had returned and there was no way Hiro was going to correct _that_ assumption.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was sooooo not what I had in mind when I started writing this chapter! O.O LOL! Poor Tadashi! Poor Hiro!
> 
> iamthecaptaindammit: Fluffy enough for you? XD


	5. Déjà vu

**Déjà vu**

"What are we doing at your nerd school?" Hiro scowled up at the familiar building once again experiencing a strong sense of Déjà vu. He'd lived this moment before, arriving at the Ito Ishioka building on the back of Tadashi's moped. Everything was exactly as he remembered it. It was dark, the sky colored with streaks of indigo, mingling with black, a perfect complement to the bright blue lights that illuminated the sleep modern design of the building that housed the robotics labs.

"Gotta grab something." Tadashi replied, sliding the moped to a halt in directly in front of the entrance to the building.

"Oh no you don't." Hiro retorted, getting off the moped to direct a pointed look at Tadashi. "I'm not falling for that again. I know what you're up to. You're hoping that seeing your lab and meeting your friends will convince me to join SFIT."

"You wound me!" Tadashi exclaimed, reaching for his chest in mock reaction to an imaginary wound. "So suspicious!" He folded over as if reacting to a new wound before standing up with a smirk. "Relax, you big baby." Tadashi reached over to ruffle his hair. "We won't be here long, I promise. We'll be in and out. Anyway, you've never seen my lab." Tadashi pointed out turning to head up the stairs that led towards the building in question.

"That's what you think." Hiro muttered under his breath, following his brother up the stairs. "Not only have I seen your nerd lab, I've taken it over."

"What was that?" Tadashi asked, quirking an eyebrow in question, the self-satisfied smile that had settled onto his lips the moment they arrived still firmly in place. Tadashi was practically oozing easy confidence and the familiarity of that self-assurance tugged at Hiro's heart strings, a stark reminder of what he had lost the day Tadashi died. Did he really have the right to take that away from his brother, now?

"I'm still on to you." Hiro raised his voice, changing the topic as flawlessly as he changed masks when in the bot ring. Now might not be the best time to tell Tadashi that his lab would belong to Hiro in the near future. Tadashi already thought Hiro's fever had led him to imagine a whole life without him potentially causing him to doubt Hiro's sanity. There was no need to cement that conviction further by revealing just how detailed said hallucination really was.

"Would it really be so bad?" Tadashi asked, suddenly changing tactics.

"What?" Hiro blinked, Tadashi's response momentarily catching him off guard. _This_ was turn the conversation had not taken the first time he'd lived this moment and he wasn't entirely sure it was a good thing. He was trapped in the past, reliving events that had redefined the very course of his life and any decision he made now was bound to have rather severe implications on anything that followed. Implications he couldn't even begin to predict.

"Attending SFIT..." Tadashi clarified, stepping into the lab space he shared with his crazy group of friends and several other students. "Would it really be so bad? There must be a part of you that wants to go here if part of the fantasy your mind came up with during your fever included you studying here for over two years. Your subconscious is probably trying to tell you something."

So Tadashi _had_ been listening to the details contained in Hiro's rambles, after all. Again, maybe not a good thing. "Anything I told you while in the throes of a fever is not legally binding. As you have so nicely pointed out to me I was not of sound mind at the time and…"

"Heads up!" Hiro automatically stumbled a few steps back, the reaction so intimately ingrained into his mind after two and a half years of sharing a lab space with Gogo that he didn't even need to think about it. A yellow and purple blur flew right past him before slowing to a halt allowing Gogo to get off her bike, hanging it up onto the hook that was designed to hold it.

Hiro turned and approached the bike, reaching out to swipe his hand between the frame of the bike and the wheel suspended several centimeters away. Gogo's electro-magnetic suspension was every bit as impressive now as it had been the first time he'd seen it and it had been a long time since he'd seen her use it on a bike, not since he invented her super suit for her, in fact.

"Hey!" Gogo's exclamation drew Hiro's attention to her, his heart rushing into his throat in sudden anxiety. The last memories he had of Gogo were of her desperately calling out to him over faulty coms, desperately looking for a way to save him…

_Tell Aunt Cass… Tell Aunt Cass I love her…_

Those were the last words he'd said to Gogo, words that he wasn't even certain she'd heard and they would forever haunt him.

"Who are you?"

Gogo's question cut him to the core, shredding what little hope of familiarity he'd still clung to, to threads. Gogo didn't recognize him. He guessed it made sense seeing as he hadn't met her yet in this timeline, but part of him, had held onto the hope that he wasn't alone, that someone other than him had been sent back as well to help him figure out why he was here in the first place. "I'm..."

"Gogo, this is my brother Hiro." Tadashi interrupted what was sure to be a mess of a response, easily introducing Hiro to one of his friends… That's right… Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon and Fred were Tadashi's friends before they had become his and the only reason they had become his friends to begin with was because Tadashi had died.

Gogo blew a pink bubble and popped it. "Welcome to the nerd lab." She said before walking away, more focused on her project than Hiro's presence.

"Yeah." Hiro's response was half-hearted, filled with hurt and sense of disillusionment he could not escape. He turned away from her and wandered further into the lab space, his mind still trying to come to terms with the realization that after two and a half years of being a part of a team, he was rather suddenly and abruptly back at square one, friendless and alone.

"Woah, woah! Woah, woah, woah, woah, woah! Do not move. Behind the line, please." Wasabi's voice filtered into his mind, halting his forward progress. Hiro blinked and looked around only to realize he'd somehow managed to wander over the yellow and black caution tape that was meant to cordon off Wasabi's work space.

"Hey, Wasabi. This is my brother Hiro." Tadashi casually walked into the room, introducing Hiro to yet another of his friends, just as he had all those years ago.

"Hello, Hiro." Wasabi raised his safety goggles to get a better look at Hiro before lowering them once more. "Prepare to be amazed." He picked up an apple and tossed it around a couple of times before throwing it through the laser-induced plasma screen he had designed. "Catch." The plasma rays sliced the apple into paper thin slices that drifted slowly to the ground.

Hiro stepped back, choosing not to catch any of the slices this time round. The entire scene was still playing out as it originally had the first time he'd lived it and Hiro was beginning to freak out. Hiro began to back away from Wasabi's work space, a familiar purple streak flying past him on his way out.

"Need this!" Gogo rushed in to grab one of the tools off of his neatly ordered desk, completely ruining the system he worked so hard to maintain.

Hiro didn't want to relive this…

"You can't do that!" Wasabi protested, turning to chase after Gogo.

Any of it…

"This is anarchy! Society has rules!"

Not the day he met the gang…

"Excuse me! Coming through!" Honey Lemon danced around him, rolling 400 pounds of tungsten carbide across the lab floor.

Not the time he'd spent working on his showcase project…

"Tadashi!" Honey Lemon's cheerful only served to highlight the turmoil that had Hiro in its grasp.

And certainly not the day Tadashi ran into the building and died.

Hiro turned and fled.

"I'm sorry, Honey Lemon." Tadashi's reply was hasty, tinged with a hint of alarm and a healthy dose of confusion. "I need to take this." That said, he sprinted after Hiro, the familiar of rhythm of his large stride ironically seeming to complement the rapid panicked beat of Hiro's smaller one.

Distressed and overwhelmed, Hiro fled to the only place he could. His lab. No, wait… It was still Tadashi's lab and nothing served to bring that point across more firmly than the sight he encountered the moment he entered the all too familiar space.

Everything was exactly as Tadashi had left it.

Before he'd died…

Before it had been cleared to make room for Hiro.

And the very sight of it broke Hiro's heart, shattering it into a thousand little fragments that pierced his lungs making the very act of breathing an agonising experience. He thought he'd been ready for this. He thought he'd come to terms with the idea of time travel and the fact that he was reliving his past and, after an entire day spent contemplating the implications of the conclusions he had drawn had thought he'd figured everything out.

He'd thought wrong.

He wasn't ready for this. He wasn't ready to face the demons in his past that still continued to haunt him in his future. Despite all the pretending to the contrary, he hadn't gotten over Tadashi's death and suddenly being faced with the events that had led to that loss, certainly _wasn't_ helping preserve his peace of mind.

"Breathe." Tadashi's voice filtered into his mind, but his words held no meaning. "Come on, Hiro! Just breathe!" The hint of alarm that had coloured his words earlier was growing ever clearer. "In and out…" Tadashi breathed, the rhythm of his breath a stark contrast to the wheezing panicked pants that were escaping Hiro's own lips. "Come on, Hiro… it's not that hard! In…" Tadashi breathed in, "… and out." And out, repeating the action until… "Baymax! OW!" Tadashi exclaimed, his tone now filled with pure panic.

The all too familiar sound of vinyl inflating filled the room.

"Hello. I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion. I was alerted to the need for medical attention when you said – ow." Baymax waved a hand and gave his custom greeting upon activating. "On a scale of 1 to 10…" The vinyl on Baymax's chest lit up to display an array of face emoji's ranging from happy to distressed, "how would you rate your…?"

"Baymax!" Tadashi interjected, interrupting Baymax's start up sequence. "Scan Hiro!"

Baymax blinked before turning to face Hiro who was still struggling to breathe. "I will scan you now." Baymax informed him before silently performing the scan. It was a familiar routine, safe, comfortable and reliable. Baymax had performed it on him more times than Hiro could count. "Scan complete." He missed this, missed having Baymax to rely on and to talk to when his own mind threatened to pull him under. "You appear to be exhibiting the symptoms of a panic attack, which include shortness of breath, hyperventilation, heart palpitations, chest pain and nausea." No kidding, Hiro could have told Baymax as much. That is, if he could find the breath to speak. "Suggested treatment includes taking deep and calming breaths."

"I've already tried that!" Tadashi exclaimed, once again interrupting the robotic nurse he'd built. "It's not working. He's not responding to me!"

"Alternative treatments include reassurance and panic attack talk downs." Baymax waddled forward, filling the air with the sound of vinyl rubbing against vinyl and then he was there, the familiar white huggable design, standing right before him, within touching distance, so close he could… Releasing a mournful wail, Hiro threw himself at Baymax, wrapped his arms around the one companion that had always managed to keep him safe from harm and burst into tears, his shallow pained gasps shifting to deep pants as he fought a sudden onslaught of grief.

Baymax wrapped one vinyl arm around Hiro's shoulders and rested the second on his head, petting him in much the same manner he had pet Mochi upon first encountering the cat. "There, there, it will be alright."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is pretty much a scene from the movie but it was necessary. Hiro is, after all, reliving the events that happened during the movie. I know I probably could have approached this in less detail but felt that it was important to explore Hiro's thought process during the course of these events in order to explore just how much of an impact this sudden shift back into the past is having on him.


	6. A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

**A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing**

"Your neurotransmitter levels indicate that you are distressed." Baymax said the moment Hiro began to calm down. An understatement to say the least. Not only was Hiro distressed, he was also hurt and confused and scared. He'd just lost two and a half years of his life and along with it part of his very identity. He was no longer a hero, no longer part of a team and no longer on the verge of being an adult. Instead, he was back to being the lonely, rebellious adolescent he had been before his brother's death had forced him to change and grow up. "Recommended treatment includes open communication with family and friends. You should interface with those closest to you."

Interface with those closest to you…

Baymax's rather particular choice of phrasing brought a smile to Hiro's lips. The healthcare companion's choice of wording was so typical it was actually predictable and the sense of familiarity it brought served to ground him back into the present. Baymax, at least, was still every bit as comforting as he had been in the reality Hiro had just lost. "I'm OK, buddy." Hiro replied drawing back to smile up at the familiar bell shaped face. "I just need some time to adjust to all of this again. It's good…" Hiro interrupted himself to sniff. Reaching up, he wiped stray tears off of his face, using the edge of his hoodie sleeve before resuming where he left off. "It's good to see you again."

Baymax blinked at Hiro, silently processing and filing the statement away. Hiro could almost see the errors Baymax was sure to be encountering as the healthcare companion accessed historical data in an attempt to figure out whether he had met Hiro before. "I am sorry but I do not appear to have any data that details a prior meeting." Baymax informed him, predictably apologetic.

"Don't worry about it, Buddy." Hiro replied with an affectionate smile, leaning in to give Baymax one last hug before reluctantly, deactivating him. He wanted nothing more than to keep Baymax around but knew that he couldn't. Baymax no longer belonged to him. He belonged to Tadashi. "I'm satisfied with my care."

Baymax turned and waddled back to his charging station. He stepped into the station, blinked one last time at Hiro before closing his eyes and deflating, filling the room with the soft whoosh of air. "You know…" Hiro turned to face Tadashi, a fake smile plastered to his face. "Super capacitors charge way faster than Lithium ion batteries."

Tadashi was staring at Hiro, eyes wide, lips parted in shock. "How did you…" Tadashi paused to lick his lips before trying again. "How did you know how to deactivate him?"

Oh no…

Hiro's inner voice groaned in distress even as he returned Tadashi's wide eyed stare with one of his own emulating a deer caught in headlights perfectly. How was he going to explain this one? Part of him, wanted nothing more than to tell Tadashi the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth… yeah, yeah, Tadashi was not the only Hamada that had watched legal shows… but he'd already tried that. The only thing the truth had managed to achieve was to convince Tadashi that Hiro had somehow temporarily lost touch with reality.

Fortunately he'd been ill at the time which had allowed Tadashi to brush off his ramblings as delusions caused by fever. Now that the fever was gone, so was his safety net. He didn't think Tadashi was going to accept _I traveled through time_ as an explanation. Hell, how was Tadashi supposed to believe that when Hiro was struggling to believe it himself? Tadashi would probably diagnose him with some kind of dissociative disorder and visits to psychologists would not be far behind. "I… uh…"

Fortunately, someone entered Tadashi's lab, saving him from having to answer. "Burning the midnight oil, Mr. Hamada?"

Unfortunately that someone was none other than Professor Robert Callaghan.

"Hey, Professor." Hiro barely registered Tadashi's greeting, blood rushing up into his head with the speed of a bullet train. Thud… thump, thump… Thud… "Actually, I was just finishing up."

Callaghan…

Thump, thump, thud…

The man that had killed his brother was standing before him, casually greeting and speaking to the man whose life he was going to throw away, all in the name of revenge.

"You must be Hiro." Callaghan continued, turning to casually address Hiro, bringing even more painful memories to the surface for Hiro knew that beneath that friendly mild-mannered surface lurked a demon, a wolf with a thirst for vengeance. That thirst had driven Callaghan to steal Hiro's project, attack him, cause havoc and destruction across San Fransokyo and nearly drown Hiro and his friends. Callaghan had thrown away morality and humanity all because he'd lost someone he held dear but the scariest part of it all was the fact that he had nearly driven Hiro to follow him down that same self-destructive path. "Bot-fighter, right? When my daughter was younger, that's all she wanted to do."

"Hey, bonehead." Hiro jerked back when Tadashi flicked him on the forehead. "Stop glaring. I'd like you to meet Professor Robert Callaghan." Tadashi paused, grinning at Hiro in expectation. He was waiting for something… eagerly anticipating Hiro's wonder and admiration… only… only he was destined to be disappointed.

"I know _exactly_ who he is." Hiro replied, his response as icy cold as the glare that he continued to direct at his adversary, completely ignoring Tadashi's request to cease and desist. He'd cease and desist only when the demon was gone, preferably taking himself as far away as humanly possible from both Hiro and Tadashi while he was at it.

"No genius, I don't think you do." Tadashi contradicted, directing a rather pointed look at Hiro. "He's _the_ Robert Callaghan, as in, the Callaghan-Catmull spline and Callaghan's laws of robotics." Tadashi clarified obviously mistaking the reason behind Hiro's cold attitude towards the Professor he greatly respected and admired.

If only he could tell his brother just how misplaced that respect and admiration really was…

"I know _exactly_ who he is." Hiro repeated, not breaking his ice cold stare. As far as he was concerned, Callaghan was a viper and he wasn't about to let his guard down around the man. He'd made that mistake once before. He wasn't about to do it again.

Tadashi sighed in defeat and stood to face his professor, reaching up to awkwardly cup the back of his neck as he apologized on behalf of his younger brother. "Please excuse my brother's rudeness. He's still recovering from a fever. He's always been a bit socially awkward and tends to get defensive when he feels like he's out of his element, especially when he's feeling unwell." Tadashi sent another pointed stare in Hiro's direction, silently hinting that they would be talking about this later.

It was a look, Hiro was intimately acquainted with having been on the receiving end of it more times than he could count. Tadashi was hoping his silent reprimand would lead Hiro remember his 'manners'. He was probably expecting Hiro to apologize and soothe things over only Hiro was not about to comply. It would be a very cold day in hell before he showed Callaghan respect the man certainly did _not_ deserve.

Callaghan on the other hand was completely unfazed by Hiro's antagonistic attitude. "Don't worry about it." He directed his reply at Tadashi, his genial smile still firmly in place. The ease with which he managed to maintain his friendly façade positively sent chills down Hiro's spine. "It's just one of the side effects of genius." Tadashi's statement addressed, Callaghan then turned his attention back to Hiro, nonchalantly quirking a brow in response to the glare he was still receiving. "I've heard a lot about you." Callaghan's tone was overly friendly. "Ever think about applying here? Your age wouldn't be an issue."

"I don't know." Tadashi spoke up, when Hiro made no move to respond. "He's pretty serious about his career in bot-fighting." He teased. He was trying really hard to lighten the mood in the room.

Callaghan raised another brow in response to Tadashi's statement, but kept his attention focused on the younger Hamada. "With your intelligence, winning must come easy." He commented, hiding a challenge beneath the casual statement.

And there it was… the statement that has started it all. Why had he not seen it before? Callaghan was trying to use Hiro's pride in his intelligence in order to manipulate him into joining the school. Unfortunately for Callaghan, Hiro was not that naive fourteen year old boy anymore. Not mentally, that is. Physically was a different matter altogether. But that was neither here nor there. All that really mattered was that Hiro had been down this road before and he knew exactly what lay along it. "Not as easy as pretending to be nice comes to you." Hiro snapped, heated anger slipping into his previously icy tone.

"Hiro!" Tadashi exclaimed, utterly horrified. "What on earth has gotten into you?!" He reached over to flick Hiro in the forehead again before turning to face his Professor once more, his cheeks tinged red in shame. "I'm sorry, Professor." He apologized once more, once again awkwardly cupping the back of his own neck. "I really don't know what's gotten into him. He's not usually this rude. He's probably just angry at me for dragging him all the way out here and taking it out on you."

"That's alright." Callaghan reached out to rest a hand on Tadashi's shoulder. _Don't touch him!_ "I understand." _Get your hands off him!_ "He's at a difficult age." _If you don't take your filthy hands off of him right now, I'm going to…_ Callaghan released Tadashi's shoulder and turned to face Hiro once more. "If you like things easy, my program isn't for you." He lectured his fatherly approach doing nothing to calm the anger simmering deep within Hiro's heart. In fact, it made Hiro want to punch him, "We push the boundaries of robotics here." right, square in the face, "My students go on to shape the future." hard enough to crush the fragile cartridge that shaped his nose. "Nice to meet you, Hiro. Good luck with the bot-fights." And with that, Callaghan was gone leaving Hiro to face Tadashi's wrath alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More dialog from the movie but told from a whole new perspective XD. Coming face to face with Callaghan was unfortunately inevitable. Poor Hiro… He's been thrown completely in the deep end and must now sink or swim.


	7. Shot to the Heart

**Shot to the Heart**

"What were you _thinking_?!"

The quiet exclamation left Tadashi's lips the moment they were alone in their bedroom. Hiro was surprised Tadashi managed to hold it in that long. After Callaghan's departure, he'd silently dragged Hiro away from the labs, strapped him into a helmet and glared at him until Hiro got the message and slipped onto the moped. Following Hiro's silent compliance, he'd then taken them home before dragging Hiro into the café and up the stairs to their bedroom. "Callaghan is a respected member of society and a genius in his own right. His research and findings changed the very field of robotics. He even invented the Magnetic-bearing servos you use in your fighter bot. You don't get to speak to him like that! You need to show him the respect he deserves."

"I am showing him the respect he deserves!" Hiro yelled back, throwing caution to the wind as he instinctively reacted to the anger and disapproval in Tadashi's controlled tone. What right did Tadashi have to reprimand him like this when he didn't even know the first thing about Callaghan? "Callaghan is _not_ a nice man! He is dark and heartless and only interested in achieving his own twisted goals and he doesn't care who he hurts along the way! If you think I'm going to respect a man like that then you are sorely mistak…"

"STOP IT HIRO!" Tadashi yelled, his exclamation echoing through the room effectively cutting Hiro's rant short. Tadashi was not a person that yelled. Ever. And the fact that he chose now to do so only served to emphasize the chasm that was steadily growing between them. "Just stop it." Tadashi didn't believe him. Tadashi didn't trust Hiro enough to give his opinion any weight and that realization cut Hiro to the core. Had he really been that unreliable at fourteen? "You don't even know the man! How can you make such an assessment before you've even taken the time to get to know him?"

"I _do_ know him." Hiro insisted in a more controlled tone, taking a deep breath in a bid to calm the fury that threatened to pour out of him in waves. He couldn't give in. He couldn't release the full extent of the anger and fear that had him in its grip. Not if he had any hopes of convincing Tadashi that he was right.

_Thud… thud, thud, thud_.

His heart beat loudly in his head, the strength of each beat rising with the increasing terror in his heart. Breathe… Hiro needed to breathe. In… and out… and in again. He needed to regain control of his emotions so he could approach the problem in a logical manner. He couldn't afford to get this wrong. "I do know him." Hiro repeated, using the repetition to calm himself enough to gather his turbulent thoughts together as best he could, given the circumstances. "I know he lost his daughter in a government experiment that went horribly wrong. I know he blames Krei for it and I know that he wants revenge. He wants to hurt Krei and he is willing to do anything, even kill, in order to achieve that goal."

There it was. The truth. All out in the open and the moment the words left his lips, Hiro knew he'd made a horrible mistake but there was not turning back.

"And how, pray tell, did you come about that information?" Tadashi asked, speaking in his usual controlled tone. He was staring at Hiro in complete disbelief. "Do you have any proof or is all of this just conjecture? Is it a rumor you picked up during one of your bot fights? Because we all know how factual and reliable _those_ are. Or did you hack a government site even though you know hacking is every bit as illegal as those bot fights you insist on participating in? Where's your proof?"

"I… uh… " He'd lost. Hiro had gambled everything he had and lost the game. Tadashi didn't believe him and there was nothing Hiro could say that would change his mind. He didn't have proof, and the truth was even more unbelievable that the options Tadashi had offered him as explanations. "I don't have any concrete proof I can show you." Hiro admitted in defeat.

"That's what I though." Tadashi glared at Hiro, arms crossed across his chest, disappointment etched into every lined of his body.

"Please…" Hiro whispered, hanging his head and clenching his eyes closed in sheer desperation. He shouldn't be doing this. This battle was already lost. He needed to accept that fact and move on only… "Please Tadashi…" His breath escaped him in deep panicked pants, an outward symptom of his inner turmoil. "You have to believe me. I wouldn't make something like this up." He looked up once more, directing a pleading look in Tadashi direction, silently begging his brother to believe him.

Tadashi grimaced, the turbulence on his features suddenly mirroring that on Hiro's. Dropping his arms he reached up and cupped the back of his own neck nervously, releasing a deep sigh. "I don't know what to believe anymore." Tadashi's eyes were filled with resignation and disappointment. "It's like I don't know you anymore. First you refuse to continue your education. Then you get involved in illegal bot-fights and now this. What happened to the little brother that used to tell me everything and trusted me to know what's best?"

What happened to the little brother that used to tell me everything and trusted me to know what's best?

_I can't tell you everything._ _I tried but you don't believe me. You think it's a delusion created by my fever addled mind and I have no way of proving otherwise. I can't tell you everything and I certainly can't trust you to know what's best because you're making a mistake. I've been here. I've done all of this before and I know how this ends. You're going to die. All because you trust someone that shouldn't be trusted and this may be my only chance to change that._

"He grew up." Hiro said softly, his voice filled with heartache and grief. "He got hurt and then he grew up."

Tadashi scowled, crossing his arms once more as he entered his infamous lecture mode. "You're only getting hurt because you're placing yourself in danger." He pointed out. "You're reckless behavior is endangering both you and me. You need to learn to think about the consequences of your actions."

"I do think about the consequences of my actions!" Hiro protested the sharp thread of hurt that coursed through him in reaction to Tadashi's reprimand only serving to fuel his anger once more.

"Not enough." Tadashi ran an exasperated hand through his hair. "You have a tendency to get dangerous ideas and then throw yourself completely into their execution with a complete disregard for your own personal safety as well as that of others!"

"I do think about the consequences of my own actions!" Hiro repeated raising his voice further, anger spurring him forward into ever more dangerous territory. Tadashi had no right to tell him he didn't think of the consequences of his own actions. Not when he was the one that… The next statement slipped past his lips before he could stop it, his mind to mouth filter failing him once again. "You're the one that's going to die because you're too focused on being a hero to think about the consequences of _your_ actions!"

Oh no…

He shouldn't have said that.

He _really_ should _not_ have said that.

"STOP IT, HIRO!" Tadashi raised his voice once again, fear and horror etched onto his face. "Stop this right now! You're scaring me!"

There it was… The reason he shouldn't have told Tadashi the truth. The reason this entire confrontation was a mistake. Tadashi didn't believe him. Instead, he though Hiro was losing his mind.

"Stop it." Tadashi repeated on a whisper when Hiro made no move to continue speaking. "Just stop."

Hiro fell silent, watching the waves of pain and fear on Tadashi's face, certain the same emotion was reflected on his own. Tadashi was struggling; struggling to accept what Hiro was telling him; struggling to come to terms with changes he hadn't seen come and struggling to understand what had caused it. "Are you still sneaking out to bot-fights?" Tadashi asked, grasping at straws in his attempt to grasp what was going on.

"I don't know." Hiro retorted, hurt inciting a defensive reaction. "Why don't you tell me? You're the one that sewed tracking devices into my clothing."

Tadashi, glanced at him sharply in surprise.

"What?" Hiro continued, his tone bitter and disillusioned. "You thought I didn't know about them? It wasn't that difficult to figure out, you know. You always manage to show up in the nick of time even though I never tell you where I'm going. I put two and two together. I'm not that stupid."

Tadashi remained silent for the longest time, carefully processing Hiro's revelation before speaking, his tone filled with regret and sorrow. "No, I suppose not. You may be growing up Hiro, but I'm not sure I like who you're turning into."

The statement cut deep, tearing a ragged wound into the very soul of Hiro's heart. All he ever wanted was to be like Tadashi, to follow in the footsteps of the older brother he'd idolized for as long as he could remember and now… now everything was broken. Instead of supporting him as he always had in the past, Tadashi was questioning his sanity and character and Hiro… Hiro was beginning to question the brother he remembered.

"I'm not sure I like who you're turning out to be either" Hiro turned and left the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shot through the heart, and you're to blame… This chapter turned out to be heart-breaking. Tadashi and Hiro hurt each other so much :(


	8. Second Chances

**Second Chances**

"So, what are you working on?" Tadashi asked softly, sitting down on Hiro's bed directly across from Hiro. Hiro was hunched over the desk in their shared bedroom furiously making notes. Or at least, that was what he was doing until Tadashi interrupted him.

Hiro started and turned to face Tadashi in surprise, not really sure how to react. Those were the first words Tadashi had spoken to him ever since their argument two days ago. Tadashi and Hiro didn't generally argue and to say that the last two days had been awkward would have been an understatement. They had both said some really hurtful things to each other and neither knew how to even begin to smooth things over. Tadashi, it seemed, appeared to have decided to take the initiative.

The ball was now in Hiro's court.

Hiro silently slid his notes towards Tadashi, deciding not to overthink things. If Tadashi was willing to make a peace offering, Hiro was not about to throw it back in his face.

Tadashi picked up the pages and flicked through them, carefully inspecting the detailed sketches and calculations that were scrawled all over them. He frowned and glanced up at Hiro, a silent question in his eyes.

"Micro-bots." Hiro explained, answering Tadashi's silent question. "They're controlled by this neurotransmitter." Hiro handed Tadashi another page which contained a detailed breakdown of his neurotransmitter's design. "The neurotransmitter registers the electrical impulses in my brain and translates it into commands which are then forwarded to the Micro-bots. The Micro-bots react to the commands and do what I want them to. I can make them do almost anything. They can build things, carry things and even fight on behalf. Their only limitation is my imagination."

Tadashi's face shifted through a myriad of expressions as Hiro spoke, ranging between confusion, disbelief and awe before finally settling on disappointment. "Are you planning on using them in bot-fights?" Tadashi asked in distaste.

The question hurt. Hiro would be a liar if he said it didn't but he understood where it was coming from and he couldn't really blame Tadashi for asking it. He'd given up bot-fighting over two years ago but Tadashi had missed most of that. Also, travelling back in time had kind of destroyed that track record by taking him back to a time where that was exactly what he'd been up to. Given the information he had to work with, Tadashi had made the only logical deduction he could. It was up to Hiro to provide Tadashi with new information. "No. I'm planning on presenting them at the SFIT showcase." Hiro clarified, carefully watching Tadashi for a reaction.

He'd bet anything, Tadashi wasn't expecting to heat _that_!

Tadashi's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped open in shock. Hiro so would have won _that_ bet. Too bad he'd missed the opportunity to make it… but then again, it wasn't really fair to use inside information to bet on a sure outcome. The stray thought surprised him. That was certainly _not_ how he had seen things two and a half years ago.

"You're planning on applying at SFIT?" Tadashi asked, still staring at Hiro in complete disbelief.

"Yeah." Hiro shrugged and looked away, suddenly uncomfortable beneath Tadashi's scrutiny. His decision to reapply for SFIT has not been an easy one and he wasn't sure he was ready to have his motives questioned, even if it was by Tadashi. Ok, _especially,_ if it was by Tadashi because the last thing he could tell Tadashi at this stage was the truth.

Following their argument, Hiro had put a lot of thought into how he should proceed. He'd been down this path before, had lived it once before and nearly lost himself in the process. It has been the most difficult time of his life but he'd made it through it. He'd survived and come out stronger only now, now he was back, with knowledge he didn't have the first time around and maybe a second chance to make things right. That realization had been more than a little daunting. The future, no, his brother's life was _literally_ in his hands and that was a responsibility he was not about to take lightly.

Following that realization, he'd carefully weighed his options. Unfortunately, he didn't have many. He didn't have his team, didn't have all of the equipment he'd designed for Big Hero 6 and didn't even have Baymax. All he had was his knowledge and his brain.

He knew Callaghan blamed Alistair Krei for the death of his daughter and was planning revenge. He knew Abigail Callaghan was still alive and lost in some inter-dimensional space. He even knew where the failed experiment had been conducted. What he didn't know was what to do with this information. The easiest solution he could think of was to approach Professor Callaghan with this information and hopefully work together with the Professor in order to get his daughter back. Assuming the Professor believed him to begin with but he'd face that problem when he got to it. In order to do that, he needed to get into SFIT which had led him back to the project that had accomplished exactly that over two and a half years ago.

"Why the sudden change of heart?" Tadashi asked the very question Hiro was dreading. Tadashi was nothing if not predictable when it came to these things.

Hiro shrugged, hanging his head in a bid to avoid responding. His mind was racing to find an explanation Tadashi would believe. He hadn't thought the problem through quite this far when he'd finally settled on his current course of action. Unfortunately for him, Tadashi was not so easily deterred.

"Hiro?" Tadashi prompted, gently touching his shoulder, the affection in the gesture reminding him of all the times Baymax had done something similar in an attempt to comfort Hiro on his bad days.

Wait…

There it was…

Right in front of him…

Baymax!

He could use Baymax as his reason for wanting to enter SFIT. The healthcare companion was, after all, a big contributing factor to his desire to enter SFIT the first time he'd made that decision. He had really admired Tadashi's creation and had wanted to achieve something just as great. "I really like Baymax." Hiro turned his head to peer at Tadashi through his messy bangs, still not ready to open himself up completely. "He's amazing. You did some serious coding on him."

Tadashi smiled, a sense of personal pride reflected in his eyes. He had every right to be proud. Baymax was Tadashi's greatest achievement. The sheer complexity that had gone onto creating him was unimaginable and Hiro was sure that even Tadashi himself didn't realize how much potential Baymax really had. "I programmed him with over 10,000 medical procedures."

"Yeah." Hiro smiled in affection when Tadashi's response only served to confirm his suspicions. The fact that Baymax had been programmed with over 10, 000 medical procedures was impressive but it was not where Baymax's true strength lay. Baymax's most powerful feature by far was his artificial intelligence that allowed him to learn and seamlessly adapt to his environment. The healthcare companion he remembered, had even managed to adapt to tasks he hadn't originally been programmed for. If Tadashi ever got the chance to meet the version of Baymax, Hiro had left behind when he died, he probably wouldn't even recognize his own invention. "A walking marshmallow would make an awesome nurse. He just makes you want to hug him all over." He agreed, silent relishing the fact that only he knew Baymax would become so much more.

Tadashi's face practically lit up, Hiro's statement giving him the sense that his brother understood what he was trying to achieve. "That's exactly what I was thinking. I was going for a non-threatening, huggable kind of thing."

"Well, you certainly achieved it though you might want to do something about how easy his vinyl exterior is to puncture. Some medical equipment is sharp you know. Like scalpels for instance." Hiro gave Tadashi a pointed look.

Tadashi flushed, a red tint coloring his cheeks. When did it become so easy to make Tadashi blush? "I didn't think of that." Tadashi admitted, sheepishly cupping the back of his neck.

Hiro maintained his pointed look for a few more seconds before giving in with a broad grin. "I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a small thing compared to everything you did think of. I mean, hyper-spectral cameras, carbon fiber skeleton, killer hand-made actuators and the ability to lift 1000 pounds? What more could a huggable healthcare companion want?"

Oh no…

Not again…

When would he learn to engage his mind to mouth filter.

Tadashi was giving him that look again. The disbelieving stare that was filled with shock, wariness and confusion. "When did you manage to find all of that out?" Tadashi asked, still trying to comprehend how Hiro could have known all that.

Hiro flushed and looked away, his own skin turning several shades brighter than any shade of red Tadashi had managed to exhibit thus far, butterflies threatening to consume him from the inside out. Think, Hamada, _think._ You can't let Tadashi doubt your character… not again. "I… uh… I could see the components through the vinyl skin when I was hugging Baymax in your lab." Hiro lied, the words spilling out in a rush.

Believe me…

Please… Tadashi… I know I'm lying but you need to believe me…

"Should have known I couldn't hide anything from a genius like you." Tadashi reached out to ruffle Hiro's perpetually messy hair. "You have a very keen eye."

A surge of relief coursed through Hiro.

That had been simpler than he expected. Maybe keeping his explanations simple was the best approach after all.

Tadashi believed him.

Hiro didn't have to make up any new lies to avoid telling the truth. Not that he didn't want to tell Tadashi the truth. It was just that his current track record of telling Tadashi the truth hadn't been all that stellar and he'd run out of options. "I learnt from the best." Hiro teased, leaning in to poke Tadashi in the side. Best to keep Tadashi distracted to keep him from over evaluating Hiro's response. "All those years of asking me to evaluate your inventions and tell you what you had done are finally paying off."

"Yeah, yeah, rub it in." Tadashi ruffled his hair again, leaning in to Hiro's space. "I could never fool you though there was that one time that…"

"Hey, hey!" Hiro reached out to shove a hand over Tadashi's mouth. "We agreed never to speak of it."

Tadashi reached up and pulled Hiro's hand away from his lips. "Awe but your reaction was just so cute. You completely missed the booster socks I invented for Mochi and thought he had somehow developed the ability to fly all by himself. You should have seen your face. It was priceless."

"I was twelve!" Hiro protested. "And distracted by a giant cake literally covered in gummy bears. Besides, you painted those booster socks to look like Mochi's fur. How was I supposed to see them when he was whizzing all around my head with a terrified look on his face?"

Tadashi laughed, before leaning in to attack Hiro. "Just admit it. I managed to fool you. For a full ten minutes."

"S… St… Stop it…" Peals of laughter escaped Hiro's lips as he tried to fight off Tadashi's tickle attack. His efforts were all in vein as Tadashi easily evaded Hiro's hands and legs, reaching for newly exposed areas each time Hiro moved to cover an area Tadashi was busy with. "I figured it out the moment I managed to catch Mochi!"

"Yes but I managed to fool you." Tadashi repeated, still tickling Hiro. "For a full ten minutes!"

"Ok! Ok, ok, ok." Hiro exclaimed rolling off the chair to land sprawled across Tadashi's lap. "I give. You managed to fool me!" He gasped, taking deep breaths to calm himself when Tadashi stopped tickling him. Tadashi didn't fight fair! He knew Hiro was ticklish. The fact that Tadashi himself was not, left Hiro completely at Tadashi's mercy.

Tadashi reached down to pull Hiro up into a seated position. He settled Hiro on the bed beside him and watched him gasp for breath, seemingly lost in thought. Tadashi had always been the thinker, carefully considering a situation before speaking. It was one of the things that made him the safe one. Hiro's impulsive nature, was, on the other hand, a major contributing factor to all the trouble Tadashi had to think them out of. "I'm proud of you, kiddo." Tadashi said softly, reaching out to ruffle Hiro's hair one last time.

Hiro blinked owlishly at his brother, still panting while his mind played catch up.

Wait… what?

Tadashi's words registered.

Hiro's cheeks turned bright red all over again, conflicted emotions coursing through him with renewed force. Tadashi was proud of him. It filled him with pain, and joy, and fear, and pride, all vying for attention in his mind. It shouldn't mean so much to him. Shouldn't come as such a surprise considering he was doing what Tadashi wanted him to do. He'd done this before, had seen the pride reflected in his brothers eyes the night he'd finally made it into SFIT. He knew Tadashi was proud of him then but he had never heard his brother actually say the words…

A stray tear made its way down his face to land unseen onto the fabric of his blue hoodie.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just found this story's song. Ironically, three days ago, I was remembering how my previous story had two songs that perfectly matched the story and its mood and thinking that this one doesn't seem to have any and then today I found this. Curious readers should Google: Otto Knows – Dying for you
> 
> Trust me, it will make more sense as this story progresses XD!


	9. Dangerous Games

**Dangerous Games**

"Guess who?" A large pair of warm hands suddenly covered Hiro's eyes obscuring his view of the design he was meticulously entering into his computer in the garage. Tadashi! It could only be Tadashi and the mischief in his voice brought a smile to Hiro's lips. It really was nice to have his older brother back even if it was under some really strange circumstances.

"Hmm, I don't know. Is it my male Latin lover?" Hiro asked in sudden mischief, easily drawn into Tadashi's playful pace. That was sure to get a rise out of his brother.

The hands were suddenly gone and his chair was being rapidly spun round to reveal a shell shocked expression on Tadashi's face.

Bingo!

"You have a male Latin lover?" Tadashi demanded, shock shifting to horror as the implications of the comment really began to sink in. "When did you start dating? You're not supposed to be dating! You're only fourteen. I knew I should have had that talk with you!"

Hiro burst out into laughter. Tadashi's expression was priceless, abject horror frozen on his face making him far too easy to read. Hiro would bet anything he knew exactly what was going on through in his brother's mind. Tadashi was trying to process the concept of a fourteen year old Hiro having a lover all while trying really hard _not_ to picture what that would entail. He was then adding the parameter that such a lover might be male and getting stuck on the idea that Hiro was far too young to know about such things let participate in any of them. The fact that there was in actual fact no lover, never mind any male ones probably didn't even occur to Tadashi. His brother was nothing if not easy to tease and his reaction was so worth the risqué comment. "No but your expression almost makes me wish I did." Hiro retorted in between chuckles.

"Hiro! That's not funny." Tadashi reprimanded him, a sheepish expression replacing the initial horror at the realization that he was being teased.

"No, you're right, it's not." Hiro sobered for a moment but only for a moment before launching back into hysterical laughter. "It's HILARIOUS! You should have seen your face! What I wouldn't give for a camera right now! Imagine all the web sites I could have posted _that_ picture on. I'd have had access to blackmail material for _life_!"

"It's not funny, bonehead!" Tadashi repeated, flicking Hiro on the forehead. "I was seriously worried about you. Relationships are serious business and not to be entered into lightly or irresponsibly. There are consequences to your actions, you know."

"I know. I know." Hiro said, his laughter dying down to the occasional chuckle. "I'll consider myself forewarned. Relationships are complicated so I'll steer clear of them." Hiro reassured Tadashi lightly, carefully watching the effect of his words on Tadashi's face. As expected, Tadashi visibly relaxed. Time to pounce. "You on the other hand are more than old enough to date." Hiro suddenly turned the tables, mischief sparkling in his eyes. "Is there, perhaps anyone you have your eye on?"

Tadashi's eyes went wide, a red flush slowly making its way onto his cheeks. "Hiro!" He'd become so easy to embarrass now that Hiro knew where his triggers lay. "I don't see how my love life, or lack thereof, is relevant to the discussion at hand."

"I don't see how it isn't." Hiro countered, thoughtfully lifting a finger. "Hmm… let's see. Who could you potentially date? You are a bit of a shut in like me. You usually spend your time either here or in your lab working on Baymax so it will have to be someone you already know. You don't appear to have a very large social circle and you definitely like girls. Which leaves us with either Gogo or Honey Lemon." Hiro explained his reasoning as he went, relishing each teasing statement as he came up with it. This game had become dangerously entertaining.

"Hiro!" Tadashi exclaimed, glancing nervously to the side. "I don't think this is the time or the pl…"

"Gogo is really short." Hiro commented, not paying any attention to Tadashi's objection.

"Hiro…"

"Especially when compared to you but we all know what they say about dynamite." Hiro continued, interrupting Tadashi before he had a chance to finish his protest. "She's a little abrupt on the outside but you probably won't find anyone more fiercely loyal than her. Honey Lemon on the other hand is really sweet."

"Hiro…" Tadashi tried again…

To no avail… "She is kind, always knows the right thing to say to cheer someone up and has legs that go one for days."

"HIRO!" Tadashi yelled, sheer desperation driving him to raise his voice. "You really need to stop!" He pleaded, his face now a rather furious shade of bright red.

POP.

Wait…

What was that?

Hiro swiveled his chair around, looking for the source of the sound that was decidedly out of place. Standing at the entrance to the garage was the entire gang. Every. Single. Last one of them. Wasabi was at the front, staring at them out of wide shell shocked eyes. Fred was standing just behind him, beaming like an idiot all while holding two thumbs up and standing behind him were none other than Honey Lemon and Gogo.

Oh no…

Well…

That explained Tadashi's behavior…

Hiro swallowed and joined his brother, starting an unofficial contest for who could blush the hardest.

"I've been trying to tell you I brought my friends over to help you with your project." Tadashi managed to choke out past his still soaring levels of embarrassment.

Hiro had absolutely nothing to say in response to that.

"Why did you stop him, Hamada?" Gogo demanded, calmly marching into the garage. "Things were just starting to get interesting." She stopped in front of Hiro and bent down to stare directly into his eyes. "So you think I'm dynamite?"

Hiro gulped.

Gogo blew a bright pink bubble and carefully scrutinized Hiro's features, letting the question hang unanswered in the air between them.

POP.

The bubble popped and disappeared.

"I can live with that." She stood and walked away finding a spot to lean against the wall to silently observe the rest of the confrontation.

Wasabi was the next one to make his way into the garage, trying his hardest to sneak past both Tadashi and Hiro without being noticed. Hiro was not surprised. He knew confrontations were not exactly Wasabi's strong point. Wasabi was followed closely by Honey Lemon who, surprisingly, actually chose to approach Hiro adding a third contestant to the blushing contest with a faint tinge of pink on her cheeks. "You must be Hiro!" She greeted him softly, holding out a hand despite her rather obvious embarrassment. "I've heard so much about you."

Hiro reached for her hand and shook it, the action completely automatic. "I… uh…my mind to mouth filter is broken and I haven't had a chance to give it the attention it deserves yet." He blurted out, his own blush threatening to rage completely out of control.

Honey Lemon giggled. "Don't worry about it. It's really nice to finally meet you. Tadashi talks about you all the time and it's nice to finally have a face to relate to the name." Honey Lemon released his hand but remained awkwardly standing before him. That is until…

"Move along. It's my turn now." Fred barged in last, waving Honey Lemon aside so he could take her place. "The name's Fred. School mascot by day, but by night...I am also a school mascot. I am a major science enthusiast and have been dying to meet Tadashi's genius younger brother. I've been trying to get Honey to develop a formula that can turn me into a fire-breathing lizard at will. But she says that's _not science_." Fred emphasized the last two words with air quotes.

"It's really not."

"Yeah, and I guess the shrink ray I asked Wasabi for isn't _science_ either. Is it?" Fred demanded.

"Nope." Wasabi couldn't help but be drawn into the conversation despite his initial desire to remain under the radar.

"Well, then, what about an _invisible sandwich_? Imagine eating a sandwich, but everybody just thinks you're crazy." Fred pretended to bite into an invisible sandwich.

"Just stop."

"Laser eyes?"

"What?"

"Tingly fingers?"

"Never gonna happen."

"Guys. Focus. We're getting way off track here." Tadashi interjected before Fred's wild ideas got completely out of hand. "We're here to help Hiro with his showcase project. He already has a design. He just needs extra hands to help put it all together."

"Hey, what about a growth serum?" Fred continued…

Gogo marched over towards Fred and hit him across the back of his head. "He means you." She snapped pointedly. "Stop throwing around wild unfeasible ideas and make yourself useful. We're here to _help_ the kid, not give him _more_ work." She directed a pointed glare at Fred, daring him to contradict her.

"Okay, okay." Fred raised his hands in defeat. "I get it. We'll help mini-Hamada finish his project first and _then_ I'll get him to turn me into a fire breathing lizard!"

"Fred." The word escaped Gogo's lips as more of a growl than anything else.

"Nah uh." Fred shook a finger at Gogo. "I'm not going to let you intimidate me like that. You have your reasons for helping the kid out and I have mine. Mine happen to include fire breathing lizards. So, what are we making?" Fred directed the question at Hiro, completely ignoring the aggravated look Gogo was leveling in his direction.

Hiro blinked, momentarily caught off guard before shaking it off. This wasn't the first time Fred's outlandish declarations completely threw things for a loop nor would it be the last. "We're making Micro-bots." Hiro answered Fred's question directing a wide grin towards the mascot – by day slash mascot – by night. And now for the part he knew Fred was going to love. "A bunch of tiny little robots that I will control using _this…_ " Hiro turned back to his PC and pulled up the design for his neurotransmitter, "neurotransmitter. All I have to do is think about something and the Micro-bots will do it."

"Woah!" Fred exclaimed bouncing up and down on his feet in excitement. "Wait, wait, wait. Let me see if I get this right. You're going to use mind control to get a bunch of tiny little robots to do cool stuff?"

Hiro swiveled his chair back around to face Fred, grin still firmly in place. "Pretty much." He agreed, silently counting down to Fred's inevitable over the top reaction.

And in...

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

"Ha!" There it was, Fred's reaction, exactly on time as expected. Fred turned to face Honey Lemon, Gogo and Wasabi. "You all told me mind control was _not science."_ Fred grossly exaggerated his air quotes this time round, "yet Hiro is proving you all wrong. He's inventing a device that will allow him to control a bunch of tiny robots…" Fred raised a hand indicatively as he spoke, leaving about a centimeter gap between his thumb and forefinger as he illustrated the size he expected the micro-bots to be, "using his mind." He finished off by wiggling fingers around his own head.

"Technically that's not true." Wasabi countered, crossing his arms. "He's not going to be controlling the robots using his mind. He's probably attempting to create a device that translates the electric signals sent by his mind into signals the micro-bots can understand. Although his chances of success are very slim, there is a very logical scientific reason that would make it possible whereas mind control as you understand it is more of a pseudoscience than anything else."

"Pseudoscience has the word _science_ in it." Fred pointed out, waving an arm victoriously in the air. "Which makes it science to me!"

"You have a very different understanding of the concept of pseudoscience than the rest of us do." Gogo muttered before giving up on Fred. It was probably for the best. Fred, was, after all, a lost cause once he got an idea into his head. "So what do you need us to do, kid?" She asked Hiro raising and eyebrow to emphasize her question.

Hiro blinked and contemplated the question for a moment before dispersing a list of tasks to the group of friends gathered there to help him. "Wasabi, I'd like you to calibrate the 3D printer. The Micro-bots are really small and need to be uniform in order to function. Honey Lemon, I need you to design a Carbon Dioxide snow cleaning nozzle that will allow me to clean electronic circuits without damaging them. The lower the level of contamination the higher the probability of success. Gogo, I need to borrow some of the electromagnetic tools you invented to work on your projects and am going to need plastic Garbage bins. Clean ones. Lots of them and Fred, we're all going to need snacks. Preferably pizza. Oh, and gummy bears! Lots of gummy bears."

"No gummy bears." Tadashi hastily amended Hiro's food order. "Sugar is bad for you." He scowled at Hiro.

Hiro directed his most potent puppy dog face at Tadashi. "Please…"

"No gummy bears." Tadashi repeated sending a pointed look in Fred's direction. "Just get the pizza. Hiro gets really hyper when he takes in too much sugar and right now we need him to be focused on the task at hand."

"Aye, sir!" Fred gave Tadashi a mock salute before running out of the garage. The others all followed suit dispersing to accomplish their allocated tasks, leaving Tadashi alone with Hiro.

"So…" Tadashi drew the word out, carefully watching Hiro. "What would you like me to do?"

Hiro blinked, the realisation that he had left Tadashi out of his task allocation momentarily jarring him. He'd gotten so used to not having his brother around that he hadn't even considered his brother's presence when dividing the tasks that needed to be done. The ease with which he'd managed to leave Tadashi out hurt. It shouldn't be so easy to do things without his brother only… only it was. He'd spent over two years learning to do things without Tadashi and now… now he had to re-learn to rely on something he had to learn to do without. "You can help me double check my design specification. I'm messing with my mind here and can't afford to make any mistakes." Hiro quickly found something for Tadashi… no, something for them _both_ to do together.

"Sure." Tadashi agreed, ruffling Hiro's hair before slipping into a seat beside Hiro. Leaning forward he began to carefully inspect the design, frowning in concentration.

Hiro kept his gaze on Tadashi instead of turning back towards the computer screen. He already knew what was on the computer screen and already knew that it would work. He was, after all, recreating something he had already created once before. What he didn't know was how Tadashi really felt about his creation. Was Tadashi really as proud as he seemed to be back then? Or did he think Hiro was messing with things he shouldn't be messing with? Hiro had never really considered Tadashi's feelings before. Maybe now was the time to start. "I'm sorry."

Tadashi blinked, turning to face Hiro in surprise. "What?"

Hiro dropped his gaze and ducked his head, hiding behind the messy strands of his own hair. "I'm sorry for what I said… about you and Gogo and Honey Lemon." He clarified. "I didn't mean to embarrass you." Okay, maybe that statement wasn't entirely true. "Not in front of them, anyway." He added. There, now it _was_ true.

"Don't worry too much about it, bonehead." Tadashi aggressively ruffled Hiro's hair, moving the strands Hiro was trying to hide behind, out of the way. "A little embarrassment never killed anyone."

Hiro lifted his head a little, to peer up at Tadashi. "So, we're good?" The question was tentative, tinged with uncertainty and insecurity.

"We're great." Tadashi confirmed with a smile. "Now let's get back to work before the rest of the gang accuses us of slacking off."

Hiro smiled in relief and silently complied, inspecting his design together with his brother at his side.


	10. Everybody say: 'Hiro'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hate writing the chapters that need to follow scenes from the movie. They are incredibly difficult to get right without ruining the flow I am trying to achieve. I have to carefully balance the original dialog that was used in the movie with Hiro's tumultuous thoughts and the subtle changes I want to introduce :(

**Everybody say: 'Hiro'**

"Wow, a lot of sweet tech here today." Tadashi commented, looking around the showcase building. D-day had finally arrived. Completing Hiro's project had gone exactly as expected, following a course of events remarkably similar to those that had occurred the first time he'd done this. Unsurprisingly, the second time round had been marginally easier. Hiro didn't make as many mistakes as he had the first time round and completed the finishing touches four days ahead of schedule. That meant he was a lot more rested than he had been the first time he'd done this. Unfortunately, knowing what he knew, he was also a lot more nervous and dreading the question that was bound to follow Tadashi's casual statement. "How are you feeling?" Tadashi asked, playfully tapping Hiro on the shoulder.

There it was… The question Hiro was less equipped to answer than he had been the last time Tadashi had asked it, fraught with levels of complexity Tadashi couldn't even begin to imagine. This was the day Tadashi had died and it was up to Hiro to make sure it didn't happen again. The pressure of that realization was positively threatening to make him sick. "You're talking to an ex-bot fighter. Takes a lot more than this to rattle me." Hiro replied, going with the easiest cover story he could come with, sub-consciously providing the same reply he'd provided all those years ago.

"Yep, he's nervous." Gogo said with certainty, casually wheeling one of the bins containing Hiro's micro-bots.

"Oh" Honey Lemon exclaimed.

"You have nothing to fear, little fellow." Fred commented attempting to reassure Hiro. Little did he know that _that_ statement couldn't be further from the truth.

"He's so tense." Honey Lemon commented to the group at large, tilting her head to the side.

"No, I'm not." The protest escaped him before he could even think to hold it back, butterflies surging up in his stomach as he fought to control the terror that threatened to consume him. _Breathe Hiro. Do not panic. Panic leads to mistakes._ Now was not the time to panic. He needed to be cool, calm and collected so that he could think clearly. He had a plan and had to make sure he executed it flawlessly. Failure was simply _not_ an option.

Hiro was going to be _sick…_

"Relax, Hiro." Honey Lemon continued. "Your tech is amazing. Tell him, Gogo."

"Stop whining. Woman up."

"I'm fine!" Hiro insisted, not only trying to reassure the others but also himself. Unfortunately his impatience bled through into his tone. He was still struggling to calm his nerves and the gang's well-meaning comments were _not_ helping. They needed to stop talking to him. He needed to think. He couldn't deal with their concern _and_ focus on what he needed to do in order to keep Tadashi alive.

"What do you need, little man?" Wasabi asked, seemingly oblivious to Hiro's growling levels of agitation. "Deodorant? Breath mint? Fresh…."

Oh hell no! Hiro was _not_ revisiting _that_ conversation. That comment would only lead to the dangerous territory of Fred's laundry and underwear habits and the finer details of what Fred did with his underwear was not a topic Hiro was willing to discuss again. It had been disturbing enough the first time round. "I do _not_ need a fresh pair of underpants!" Hiro interjected, hastily cutting Wasabi off before he could finish his last sentence.

Wasabi stared at Hiro in shock, the rest of his offer effectibely cut short. "How did you know I was going to offer you a fresh pair of underpants?" He asked.

Fred's jaw dropped. As in literally dropped open in sheer awe and he managed a whole five seconds of silence before exclaiming. "Woah, the little dude read your mind!" He exclaimed, bouncing up and down in excitement, using the bin he was still holding onto as leverage. "He knew exactly what you were going to say before you said it! There's no way he could have known that without reading your mind! And you all made fun of me for believing that that it was possible. Look who's having the last laugh now? He's not even wearing that neurotransmitter thingy he invented! Oh, oh, I know! His invention must have affected his mind causing it to evolve and develop super powers, just like Spiderman when that genetically modified spider bit him! How cool is that?"

"Hiro didn't read my mind, Fred." Wasabi quickly brushed Fred's declaration off as impossible and provided an answer to his own question simply to avoid Fred's wild theories. "He probably figured out what I was going to say based on the verbal queues I provided to him in the statements I made leading up to my offer. He used those cues and deduced that I was going to offer him underpants. No mind reading required."

"Underpants? Really?" Gogo muttered. "You need serious help." Her comment was all but lost in the heat of Wasabi's and Fred's heated debate.

"That's not possible." Fred insisted.

"Of course it's possible." Wasabi countered. "There is an entire field of study devoted to researching the human capacity for predicting what someone is going to say. This ability is linked to a person's knowledge of linguistic probability which allows someone to infer what is going to be said based situational context, syntax and an intimate understanding of a language's day-to-day usage."

"That may be true but that doesn't explain how Hiro managed to go from deodorant and breath mints to underpants. It's not a logical deduction to make. We've, "Fred pointed at Gogo, Honey Lemon and Tadashi indicatively, "all known you a lot longer than the little guy has and we didn't even know you carried a spare pair of underpants around. How did the little dude know that when he's known you for a lot less time? Admit it, you were surprised!" Fred pointed out.

Wasabi opened his mouth to offer an explanation only to close it once more when none was forthcoming. He was clearly at a loss.

Oh no…

Suddenly Hiro was the centre of attention, five pairs of eyes staring at him with a mixture of disbelief and awe, clearly expecting him to explain himself. His mind to mouth filter had failed him once again. "I… uh…" Hiro floundered eyes darting desperately around the science exposition in the hopes of finding something he could use as a distraction. Anything would do! Surely, there had to be something? An eye-catching experiment, a famous celebrity, someone doing something they shouldn't be? He was even willing to settle for someone that was dressed weird. Only he couldn't spot anything out of the ordinary. "I guess I… uh… "

Just when it seemed that all hope was lost, salvation arrived in the form of a voice, speaking through an intercom. "Next presenter, Hiro Hamada."

_Finally! Something was going his way!_

"Gotta go. I'm up." Hiro said in a rush, hastily moving towards the stage in a bid to escape the awkward situation his mouth had once again gotten him into. Blurting things out without really thinking them through was starting to become seriously inconvenient.

_Then again… maybe not…_

His escape plan, however, didn't go as smoothly as he hoped. "Wait!' Honey Lemon reached out, catching hold of the sleeve of Hiro's hoodie two steps before he managed to slip beyond her reach. Why did she have to be so tall? "We need a photo!" She pulled out her cell phone, crowding very pointedly into Hiro's personal space. The rest of the gang followed suit, crowding around Hiro in a show of support. "Everybody say: _Hiro_."

_Okay, so she hadn't stopped him in order to force him to explain his strange insight into the workings of Fred's mind. She only wanted a picture. He'd be free as soon as she snapped it, right?_

"Hiro!" The phone clicked, forever immortalizing the deer caught in headlights expression on Hiro's face.

"We love you, Hiro. Good luck!"

"Don't mess it up."

"Break a leg, little man."

"Science, yeah!"

The gang quickly dispersed heading towards their pre-defined positions in the hall, leaving Hiro alone with Tadashi.

_Ok, that was one hurdle down…one more to go…_

"All right, bro. This is it." Tadashi raised a fist expectantly.

"Yeah." Hiro absently agreed, not really paying attention to Tadashi. "This is it." He stared nervously at the stage, his palms sweating and his heart beating a rapid rhythm in his chest. Hiro was fighting really had not to throw up. This was it, the moment he'd been dreading and the truth was: He wasn't even remotely ready to face it let alone live through it again.

"Come on. Don't leave me hanging." Tadashi continued playfully. He walked around Hiro, hand still raised only to have his features fall when he registered the terrified expression on Hiro's face. "What's going on?" Tadashi asked softly, dropping his hand.

Hiro turned to look at his brother and by look, he meant really _look_. Tadashi was worried. His warm brown eyes were brimming with concern and his brow was furrowed, revealing a tiny stress line that was destined to become a serious wrinkle. Assuming Tadashi survived long enough to age that is. "I…" Hiro licked suddenly dry lips, wishing he could freeze time forever thus preserving this moment and avoid the looming stress. "I…" This was it. His second chance to make things right and the possibility of failure was every bit as high, if not higher than the potential for success. "I just want you to know I love you." Hiro rushed forward and embraced Tadashi, burying his face in the familiar fabric of Tadashi's cardigan.

"Hey." Tadashi awkwardly returned the embrace, confusion etched into his features. "You got this." It was a testament to the strength of his personality that he did not question Hiro's odd behavior, merely offering the comfort he sensed Hiro needed. Comfort always came first. The questions would come later. It was one of the things Hiro loved about him.

"Yeah." Hiro whispered, drawing away. "I've got this." He gave Tadashi a sad smile before turning away to step onto the stage, preparing to launch into the speech that had had literally changed his life. "Hi. My name is Hiro..."


	11. Class One Misdemeanor

**Class One Misdemeanor**

Hiro's presentation speech was flawless and went off without a hitch. Was there ever a doubt that it would be anything but perfect? He was a genius after all and the fact that he'd done this before… well that was just a bonus. He wasn't worried. Not even for a second.

Who was he kidding?

Hiro was terrified. His fear of public speaking was still very much alive, even after two and a half years of being in the spotlight as the leader of a rather, let's just say extraordinary group of heroes. Knowing what he knew only made it that much worse as every minute that ticked by brought him a minute closer to the worst moment of his young life. Simply breathing was a tremendous effort but he wasn't about to let Tadashi know that. Tadashi worried about him enough as it was. It was his turn to worry about Tadashi.

Jumping off the stage he dropped the neurotransmitter down and returned Tadashi's clap and fist bump sequence with ease allowing himself a moment to revel in Tadashi's joy and pride at his victory. It was a selfish move on his part but he couldn't help it. It wasn't often that his brother got the opportunity to be genuinely proud of him and Hiro wanted to enjoy it, if only for a minute. He did, after all, need all the courage he could muster for the confrontation that was coming.

"You did it!'

"Not bad!"

"Yeah! You just blew my mind, dude!"

"They loved you. That was amazing!"

"Yes. With some development, your tech could be revolutionary." The gang's exuberance was quickly killed by the arrival of what to them was an unexpected guest.

Hiro on the other hand had both been anticipating and dreading this moment. "Alistair Krei." Hiro's greeting was both cautious and nervous.

"May I?" Alistair Krei asked holding out a hand.

This was it. The moment of truth. Time to initiate his subtle plan to change the future. Hiro reached into his pocket and clenched his hand around the micro-bot he had slipped into it mere moments before. _Breathe, Hiro… just breathe…_ Hiro took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Mr Krei but I think I'll hold onto it for now."

Alistair Krei blinked, momentarily surprised by Hiro's response. He clearly had not expected to have his request denied. He was, however, not phased for very long and casually adjusted his suit as he quickly regained his composure. "I want your micro-bots at Krei Tech."

"Mr. Krei is right." Callaghan approached the group casually as he spoke, addressing Hiro. "Your Micro-bots are an inspired piece of tech. You can continue to develop them, or you can sell them to a man who's only guided by his own self-interest."

_You mean someone like you?_

Hiro couldn't help the stray bitter thought. Fortunately his mind to mouth filter actually worked for once in his life and he managed not to give it voice.

The irony in Callaghan's statement did not fail to escape Hiro's notice as it had the first time around. It was incredible how he could so casually accuse Krei of only being guided by his own self-interest when it the end it was Callaghan that had let self-interest take him down the dark path of vengeance. How did he manage to miss just how deep Callaghan's animosity towards Krei really ran? Now that he knew what he was looking for it couldn't be more obvious. The shift in his eyes, the anger in his tone, the defensive angry posture. It was all there, blatantly advertised for anyone that bothered to look.

"Robert, I know how feel about me but it shouldn't affect…"

"This is your decision, Hiro. But you should know Mr. Krei has cut corners and ignored sound science to get where he is." Callaghan continued speaking right over Krei.

"That's just not…"

"Hold it!" Hiro raised his hands along with his voice cutting off the argument both Callaghan and Krei were trying to hide beneath their polite speech and casual demeanor. "Let me stop the two of you right there. Mr. Krei, I appreciate the offer you are trying to make but my micro-bots are not now nor will they ever be for sale. Not for any amount of money or prestige. All I want is a chance to go to go to school alongside my brother." Hiro glanced up at Tadashi, offering him a smile which Tadashi easily returned, pride and approval gleaming in his eyes.

"I can certainly help with that." Callaghan said, looking far too pleased with himself as he pointedly handed Hiro is SFIT acceptance letter in front of Krei. "I look forward to seeing you in class." The action was clearly intended to be a barb directed at Krei and it was clear Krei didn't miss it.

"Robert." Krei's farewell was curt and dismissive as he turned and walked away, adjusting his suit once more.

That was one more obstacle down.

"Woo-hoo!" Fred returned with a jubilant cry leaping forward to embrace Hiro in excitement. "You did it, little dude! You got into SFIT! We need to go out to celebrate!"

"Yeah!" Honey Lemon exclaimed, joining in the fray. "All your hard work finally paid off. Come on, come on. Let's go!" She shuffled him forward towards the door, the rest of the gang close on her heels. "You were amazing!" And so it continued, each member of the gang piling praise on him, surrounding him with happy excited energy. Hiro was all too quickly caught in that moment, beaming beneath their praise and waving the acceptance letter above his head as they walked out of the showcase building.

"All right, geniuses." Aunt Cass said, joyfully skipping down the steps. "Let's feed those hungry brains. Back to the café! Dinner is on me!"

"Yes!" Fred leaped into the air in excitement. "Nothing is better than free food!"

Tadashi placed a hand on Hiro's shoulder gently slowing their walk, while simultaneously addressing Aunt Cass. "Aunt Cass..."

Wait…

Aunt Cass turned to face Tadashi.

Wait! What was he _doing_?

"We'll catch up, ok?"

This was all wrong. He shouldn't be here. He'd forgotten it inside.

"Sure." Aunt Cass agreed rushing in to embrace Hiro. "I'm so proud of you." Hiro tensed in her embrace, panic coursing through his veins. He needed to go back. Now… There was no time to waste. "Both of you." Aunt Cass pulled Tadashi into the embrace before releasing them both and running off.

The moment Hiro was free, he turned and ran back up the stairs.

"What the… Hiro?!" Tadashi called up turning to run after Hiro.

No! This was all wrong. Everything was falling apart. Hiro needed to keep Tadashi _out_ of the building, not have him run in after him. _Why_ was everything falling apart so quickly? He'd had a plan. It had been so simple. Keep the fire from happening and talk to Professor Callaghan once the semester started. Why was it so difficult to stick to such a simple plan? Tadashi couldn't follow him. He needed to stay out of the building at all costs.

Hiro swivelled around and ran back down towards Tadashi, pushing his brother down the stairs in a rush. "No, no, no, no, NO!" He yelled pushing Tadashi towards the bridge. "You stay out here. Meet me at the bridge. I only need a minute to fetch something. I promise I'll be right back." The words escaped him in a rush, sheer desperation lending them more force than they required.

Tadashi frowned and gave him a strange look, confusion swirling in his deep brown eyes. "Hiro?" He asked tentatively, a wealth of concern in that single word. "You ok?" He reached out, moving to touch Hiro only to have his hand brushed briskly aside.

No time.

Hiro didn't have time to deal with his brother's concern or to reassure him. He needed to go back, needed to fetch it before Callaghan got his hands on it or his entire plan would go up in flames, along with the showcase building and… No. Now was not the time. "I'll be right back." Hiro insisted looking directly into his brothers eyes. "Promise me you'll wait for me by the bridge."

"Hiro, what…"

"Promise me!" Hiro yelled, cutting Tadashi off.

Tadashi blinked, the frown on his brow deepening with his ever increasing levels of distress, his initial concern now tinged with a hint of panic and fear. "Hiro…"

"Please." Hiro tried once last time, the word escaping him in a broken whisper. "Just… trust me." And with those words he finally made some headway.

Tadashi's face softened and he reached out to ruffle Hiro's hair. "Ok. Go fetch whatever it is you've forgotten and meet me at the bridge. I'll be waiting for you. We'll discuss whatever is going on with you, when you get back." Tadashi's concern was still there and he was basically telling Hiro this topic was far from over but he was giving Hiro a momentary reprieve and that… that was all Hiro needed.

Turning away from Tadashi, he ran up the stairs and back into the showcase building, only one destination in mind. Pushing open the door he ran into the exposition hall, rushing past the underwater exercise machine, the IHS booth and the ecobot stand without sparing them even a second glance in his bid to get back to the stage in the shortest time possible.

Please… please, oh please, oh please let it still be there.

The chant went round and round in his head with each desperate ragged breath he took, his heart thudding in his chest so hard he feared it may leap out at any moment. It had to be there. It just had to. Just a few more steps and the stage would be in sight… There it was. Finally! The stage was in sight and lying innocently on it was the object he'd so desperately returned to retrieve: His neurotransmitter!

Oh, thank God!

The surge of relief that rushed through him at the sight released a shot of adrenaline into his blood stream enabling him to put on an extra burst of speed as he sprinted the last few steps forward, so focused on snatching up the neurotransmitter before Callaghan could get a chance to get hold of it that he ran headlong into the stage, completely forgetting to stop in the process.

Bang!

The impact send a jarring pain through his body, and the air out of his lungs. "OW!" But it was so worth it. Everything hurt. His feet, his knees, his chest and his lungs but none of that mattered. The only sensation that mattered was feel of the smooth, cool metal clutched firmly in his grasp. Hiro had won. He'd managed to retrieve his neurotransmitter and without the transmitter his micro-bots were useless. Take that, Callaghan! Things were finally taking a turn for the better.

Turning away from the stage, Hiro tossed the transmitter joyfully up into the air and caught it with a smirk before sauntering back towards the entrance to the showcase building, his steps cocky and filled with confidence. Another hurdle down!

Wait…

What was that?

Five steps into his departure he stumbled to a halt, a shadow of movement catching his eye. Panic suddenly rising up within him, Hiro turned towards the movement located in the far corner of the room and peered into the surrounding shadows. "Breathe… It's just your imagination Hiro." He whispered to himself under his breath, cautiously moving towards the corner of the room on tiptoe, using both his hands to firmly clutch the neurotransmitter against his chest. Only it wasn't his imagination.

Hiro's breath caught in his throat when the shadows moved again revealing for but a moment the far too familiar silhouette of a tall cloaked man. Yokai! Hiro's plan had failed. Callaghan was already on the move, preparing to set the showcased building alight in order to get his hands on Hiro's invention. Hiro needed to get out of there! Now! But first…

Turning away from Yokai and his dubious activities, Hiro rushed back towards the stage and the fire alarm he had noticed during an inspection he had performed of the building several days prior to this event.

Thank God, he'd had the foresight to at least do _that_ much!

Skidding to a halt, he punched the 'glass' shielding the box. The plastic shielding cracked and crumbled to the floor automatically triggering the alarm which immediately filled the air with a loud evacuation beep, alerting everyone in the building to the looming danger. Satisfied that he'd done everything he could to protect everyone in the building from Callaghan, Hiro turned and ran, joining the crowd of people all rushing towards the exit.

_Beep, Beep, Beep._

Panicked people ran, shoving and pushing one another out of the way.

_Beep, Beep, Beep._

Someone accidentally shoved Hiro to the ground and stepped on his ankle in the rush to get out the door. Hiro felt something crack. Well _that_ was going to hurt later. Okay, truth be told, it hurt now but he didn't have time to deal with it.

_Beep, Beep, Beep._

Another person tripped over one of the hands Hiro had splayed to catch himself during the fall.

_Beep, Beep, Beep._

Hiro had to move! He risked getting trampled to death if he stayed here and there was no way he was going to let _that_ happen! He wasn't going to let Callaghan win by taking a Hamada brother out of the equation. Not Tadashi and not him! Hiro twisted his body into a roll and used all the knowledge of martial arts, many years of practice with his brother had ingrained into him to smoothly leap into motion, slipping between panicked people to find his footing once more. Ignoring the sharp pain that coursed through him the moment he put weight on his ankle he ran, ran straight towards the glass doors like there was no tomorrow to finally reach his goal.

One moment he was inside, trapped among a surge of heated bodies driven forward in a panicked rush and the next he was free, outside in the cool evening air and away from all the turmoil being trapped in potentially burning building had wrought only he didn't have time to be relieved as the sight before him brought back all his worst nightmares with the force of a hammer blow straight to his gut. Tadashi was running up the stairs towards the entrance of the showcase burning.

Oh, hell, no!

Hiro was _not_ going down that route. Not again. He hadn't just risked his own life just to have Tadashi repeat the mistake he had made all those years ago. Gathering the little energy he had remaining, he rushed forward and launched himself at his brother catching Tadashi around the waist as he fell. The momentum of his movement carried onto his brother and they tumbled down the stairs, Tadashi landing on his ass with Hiro sprawled in his lap. "Hiro! What on earth do you think you're doing? That was dangerous! You could have gotten both of us seriously injured!"

Tadashi's rant was the best thing Hiro had ever heard, the familiar lilac scent of the washing powder Aunt Cass used to wash their clothing mingling with a scent that belonged uniquely to Tadashi blanketing Hiro to provide him with comfort. Everything was ok. Tadashi was there, in his arms and Hiro would do everything he could to make sure it stayed that way. "I'm ok." He muttered into the fabric of Tadashi's cardigan. "You're ok." He looked up to meet his brother's gaze, a stupid dopey smile on his lips. "We're ok."

"Of course we are, bonehead." Tadashi ruffled Hiro's hair, signs of relief still etched onto his features. Tadashi had been worried about him. "No thanks to you, now let go so I can get in there and help out the rest of the people in the building." Tadashi had rushed over to his aid because he'd been worried about Hiro and now he wanted to… wait… WHAT?!

NO! No, no and a million times NO! Tadashi was NOT going into that building. "Tadashi! No!" Hiro yelled tightening his grasp around his brother's waist.

"There could still be people in there." Tadashi said shifting to move Hiro off. "Someone has to help."

"No." Hiro repeated clinging to Tadashi with all of his strength. Tadashi was trying to escape his grasp but Hiro was not about to let him go. That had been his biggest mistake last time and he was not about to repeat it.

"Hiro, the fire alarm has gone off. That means there could be a fire in there. Someone could be trapped." Tadashi continued his attempts to pry Hiro off all while trying to reason with him.

"No one is trapped!" Hiro informed him, not about to be moved.

"You can't know that, Hiro!" Tadashi yelled managing to work one of Hiro's hands off of him.

"Yes! Yes I can!" Hiro yelled in desperation, trying to pull the free hand back so he could use it to latch back onto Tadashi.

"How?! How can you know that?!" Tadashi demanded holding onto Hiro's free hand while using his other hand to work on the hand Hiro still had latched onto his body.

"Because I'm the one that set if off." Hiro yelled, still clinging to Tadashi for dear life.

"What?"

"I pulled the fire alarm." Hiro clarified, glaring at Tadashi.

"Did you see a fire?" Tadashi asked, his attempts to escape momentarily forgotten in light of this new information.

"No."

"Hiro!" Tadashi exclaimed, releasing the hand he had been clinging to, to throw both of his own up into the air in sheer exasperation. "I can't believe you! That's a first-degree misdemeanor! Are you _trying_ to get yourself arrested?!"

"No." Hiro repeated, relief coursing through him. He'd won. He had finally won. Tadashi was no longer going to run into the showcase building. He was going to yell at him, reprimand him and tell him all the reasons why his actions were stupid and reckless and idiotic but he wasn't going to go into the showcase building and he wasn't going to die and that's all that really mattered. Now that the immediate danger had been taken care of, his brain was threatening to shut down.

"Don't you ' _no'_ me!" Tadashi continued his reprimand. "Pulling a fire alarm when there is no fire is a crime, especially when you do it at a school! You could be charged with culpable negligence if anyone gets hurt cause of this! Or even preventing or obstructing the extinguishing of a fire! _Think_ Hiro! Actions have consequences! You can't keep recklessly endangering yourself and others like this! Come on." Tadashi stood easily slipping out of Hiro's grasp now that the immediate danger of him running back into the building was past. "We're going home before someone catches you and we're going to have a serious talk about the consequences of your actions." Reaching down he pulled Hiro up and onto his feet.

Sharp pain coursed through him the moment Hiro stood and his body began to crash. His ankle crumbled beneath his weight. Oh yeah, he'd forgotten about that. Could he be charged with culpable negligence if the person he had managed to hurt by pulling the fire alarm was himself?

"Hiro?"

Hiro giggled, pain, adrenaline, relief and remnants of fear clouding his mind. Wouldn't that be ironic? The state would hereby like to present the next case. Hiro Hamada versus himself.

"Hiro?"

Would that mean he'd get both the compensation and the sentence if he was found guilty? It would be interesting to see how _that_ possibility would be resolved. Maybe the compensation would involve lessening his sentence for the crime?

"Hiro!"

Hiro tumbled to the ground, darkness rushing in to claim his exhausted mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally supposed to form part of the previous chapter but I split it out while still writing the previous chapter when I realized that it was just going to get far too long. To be honest though, I didn't expect this half to be quite this long when I planned what was going into it. \O.O/


	12. mE = Insanity²

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just WOW… This is so NOT where I saw this chapter going…

**mE = Insanity²**

"MOTHER F…" Hiro spotted Tadashi at his side just in time to catch the cuss word moments before it escaped his lips. "FATHER!" He screamed, arching his back as intense pain coursed through his body. This was _not_ how he imagined he'd wake up after passing out at the showcase building. In fact, this was _not_ how anyone should wake up. Ever! "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" What? He never said his cuss word filter was perfect.

Tadashi quirked an eyebrow and continued to hold Hiro's chest down. The pressure he was exerting was the only reason Hiro hadn't managed to bolt off the flat surface he was currently lying on. "The nice doctor here is busy setting the bones in the ankle _you_ so stupidly broke." Tadashi explained pointedly giving Hiro a look. "Now if you would be, so kind as to lie still he can finish the job he started and we can go home."

"But it hurts." Hiro whimpered, breathing hard through the shooting spikes of pain that continued to course through him each time the doctor shifted his ankle. It wasn't fair. Why should he have to suffer simply because he wanted to save Tadashi's life? Tadashi wasn't even grateful. Instead he was angry and under the mistaken impression that Hiro was some kind of juvenile delinquent out to get himself arrested.

"As well it should." Tadashi snapped glaring at Hiro. "I told you there are consequences to your actions."

"But why do all the consequences have to be bad?" Hiro whined, grabbing the edges of what he realized was a hospital bed when a fresh wave of pain ran through him. He was not going cry. No way was he going to cry. He may be stuck in the body of a fourteen year old but he was nearly seventeen and seventeen year old teens did _not_ cry over something as stupid as a broken ankle.

"Because the actions that you chose to take were both reckless and dangerous. Not to mention incredibly stupid." Tadashi continued his reprimand, relaxing the pressure on Hiro's chest little when he realized Hiro was no longer in danger of launching himself off the bed.

"I had good reason to do what I did." Hiro protested, another whine escaping his lips when the doctor gently placed his swollen, throbbing ankle back down onto the bed. It was nice to know that there was at least one person in the room who wasn't enjoying the pain Hiro was suffering through.

Here's looking at _you_ Tadashi. Yes you. I know you think I deserve this but I don't.

"Give me one good reason to pull a fire alarm when there is no fire present?" Tadashi quirked an eyebrow in question, daring Hiro to find one, just one, good reason to explain his actions. Well the joke was on him. Hiro had more than one good reason…

Which he probably shouldn't…

"To get everyone out before Callaghan started one!" …share.

Oh no…

Note to self: Fix mind to mouth filter. ASAP!

Tadashi scowled and leaned forward, suddenly using excessive force to immobilize Hiro. "What is your problem, Hiro?!" He snapped, anger flashing in his eyes. "Why do you suddenly have it in for Callaghan? He is a good man that worked really hard to get where he is. He even managed to make major contributions to robotics, the field of study _you_ love so much! What on earth did he do to you to deserve the slander you are throwing at him?"

"You really want to know what he did to me?" Hiro yelled reaching up to shove Tadashi's arms off of his chest so he could breathe again. "I'll tell you exactly what he did to me." Hiro sat up, ignoring the pain that shot through him with the movement. "He killed you!" He was tired. Tired of fighting, tired of trying to make sense of what his life had become, tired of all the secrets he had to keep just to appear sane and most of all tired of Tadashi always thinking the worst of him.

"What?" Tadashi's jaw dropped in shock, fear and horror reflected in his eyes and Hiro was not dumb enough to think the emotions were directed at Callaghan. No, those emotions were reserved solely for Hiro and Hiro alone. Tadashi didn't for one moment doubt his Professors character but he certainly doubted Hiro's sanity and Hiro no longer cared. The damage had already been done long before this moment and pretending that everything was ok wasn't getting him anywhere.

"He killed you!" Hiro repeated, anger and frustration waging war within. Why? Why did Tadashi trust the man that killed him more than he trusted his own brother? His own flesh and blood? It simply wasn't FAIR! If that's how it was going to be he might as well go all in. It's not like he really had anything to lose anyway. Tadashi began to doubt Hiro's sanity the moment Hiro woke up in the past. "You died running into the showcase building to save him from a fire he didn't need to be saved from because he started it and he didn't even care! He just said trying to save him was _your_ mistake! Your life meant _nothing_ to him! All he cared about was revenge for a crime that didn't even happen because Abigail is _alive_!"

Amend note to self: Forget the Mind to Mouth filter. There's nothing left to filter. It's over.

Tadashi was… strangely enough speechless, his earlier fear and horror still frozen on his face. The doctor was also silent, pointedly ignoring the conversation taking place between the two brothers in favour of carefully binding splints to Hiro's ankle while his patient was distracted. This probably was not the best location for Hiro to air his grievances but it was too late to take the words back now. To say that Hiro had just messed up, would probably have been an understatement but this confrontation had been inevitable, destined to play out from the moment he first woke up to find himself reliving the events leading up to the worst incident of his life.

Unable to face his brother's expression any longer, Hiro turned away to stare blankly down at the neon orange strapping the doctor was busy applying to his ankle, ignoring the water that had found its way onto his face. He was, after all, _NOT_ crying!

"Hiro…" Tadashi ventured cautiously after a long drawn out moment of silence. "Did something happen?"

Hiro blinked, both in a bid to clear his vision and get rid of the evidence of his weakness before turning to face his brother once more. The fear and horror that had been etched on Tadashi's face mere moments earlier was gone, wiped clean by the concern that had taken its place. Hiro licked suddenly dry lips before speaking. "What?" He asked, cautiously, common sense dictating that he first clarify what Tadashi was referring to before getting himself into even more trouble. Where had that common sense been a few minutes ago when he'd stupidly revealed facts no one in their right mind would believe. In front of a doctor no less. Tadashi would probably receive instructions to take Hiro to a psychologist before all of this was over.

"Did something happen?" Tadashi repeated the question, glancing at the doctor before leaning in to whisper. "During one of the bot-fights you were going to."

Hiro immediately saw where this was going. Tadashi was looking for something to explain Hiro's erratic behavior and what to him were nonsensical statements. The easiest explanation was a traumatic event. Perhaps a blow to the head. Tadashi was hoping Hiro had suffered some kind of trauma that affected his perception of reality and the most likely place Hiro could have suffered such would have been at a bot fight.

"No." Hiro said softly, not willing to give either himself or Tadashi an easy way out. "Nothing happened." As convenient as the excuse Tadashi was all but handing him was, Hiro couldn't in good conscience use it. If he did, Tadashi would inevitably blame himself for not being there to protect Hiro and that simply wasn't right. This was Hiro's mess and he wasn't about to make Tadashi pay for it.

"You didn't eat anything or drink anything strange?" Tadashi tried again, unwilling to let the easy explanation go.

"No." Hiro repeated, meeting his brother's gaze head on. "I didn't eat or drink anything _at all_. I know better than to accept something that may be laced with some kind of drugs. Besides, you always managed to save me before I could really get myself into trouble. Those trackers of yours were nothing if not effective." Hiro suddenly teased in an attempt to lighten the mood.

Only Tadashi was not so easy to distract. "What about your memory? Are there any unexplained blanks in it? Any missing time you can't remember?"

Hiro sighed reaching out to grab the edge of his hoodie, balling the fabric in his fists. He dropped his head, stray strands of hair falling forward to brush his cheeks effectively hiding him away from his brother's piercing stare. Why did Tadashi have to be so persistent? "I know you think I'm crazy." Hiro whispered, left with no choice but to take the bull by the horns. He nervously began to play with the fabric of his hoodie. "And I don't blame you. I'd think I'm crazy too if I didn't have evidence to the contrary but everything I've told you is true."

Tadashi sighed and reached forward to brush the bangs Hiro was hiding behind away from his face, keeping his hands cupped around Hiro's face to keep them there. "Hiro, it can't be true. If it were I wouldn't be here, talking to you. I'd be dead." Tadashi pointed out turning Hiro to face him, forcing their eyes to meet once more.

"It _is_ true." Hiro insisted, reaching up to grab Tadashi's hands pulling them away from his face. His own eyes reflected the pain swirling deep within Tadashi's. "I lost you and had to make a life without you. And then… then I traveled back in time and have been working to stop it from happening again. You have to believe me! Please…. Tadashi… I wouldn't lie to you. Not about something like this." Why? Why was this so hard?

Tadashi took advantage of Hiro's action and wove the fingers of his hands with Hiro's, linking their hands together, effectively preventing Hiro from pulling away. "I know you _believe_ it's all true." Tadashi agreed s.

"I'm not crazy." Hiro said, a stray tear falling down his face. "I know you think I am but I'm not."

"I don't think you're crazy." Tadashi whispered, leaning forward to connect his forehead with Hiro's, keeping their hands intertwined. "I just think something happened and your mind scrambled all your memories around. It's all based on things that happened to you. Your recent fever probably made you think of fire and you're reliving the memories and trauma of our parent's death only you've substituted me in their place. Everything you recall has a logic explanation somewhere in your life. You're just," Tadashi took a deep shaky breath before trying again. "You're just mixing it all up."

"Tadashi…"

"Just," Tadashi cut Hiro off, pausing to squeeze Hiro's hands. "Just give my theory a chance, Hiro. You're a scientist, just like me. Think about it. You know everything has a logical explanation. It makes more sense than time travel, don't you think?"

"I…" All logical thought suddenly fled Hiro's mind leaving him with nothing but questions. Was Tadashi right? Was his mind really playing tricks on him by taking legitimate memories he had and twisting them to make new ones? Was his three day fever perhaps the trigger as Tadashi had initially suspected? If that was true, what about the shadow he had seen in the showcase building? The one of Callaghan dressed as Yokai? To be fair, he hadn't actually _seen_ Yokai. He'd only seen a shadowy silhouette that _looked_ like it might belong to Yokai and that could have easily been his mind fabricating something he expected to see. What about the fire then? Surely the showcase fire proved he was right? There was no way he could have known about that without having lived through it before? Only… only there was no fire. He was the one that had pulled the fire alarm and he'd done it with no evidence of a fire in sight. He'd reacted to an irrational fear created by his mind and… and…

Oh no…

He _was_ losing his mind!

"Let me help you." Tadashi pleaded, desperately clinging to Hiro's hands. "Let me take you to see someone. We'll figure this out, together. I promise. Just let me get you the help you need."

"I…" He didn't want to. Hiro didn't want to see a neurologist, psychologist, psychiatrist or anyone else that claimed to be an expert in matters of the mind because that would mean admitting defeat. That would mean admitting he was losing his mind and with that the core of his very identity. "I'll think about it." Hiro relented giving Tadashi some reprieve and himself some space to really think about the implications of what Tadashi was suggesting.

"Okay." Tadashi pulled Hiro into his arms and held him close while the doctor finished strapping Hiro's ankle, silently ignoring the stream of tears falling down Hiro's face.

Almost seventeen year old teens may not cry about such things but fourteen year old teens most certainly did.


	13. Arson

**Arson**

"Good morning. How is our little invalid doing this morning?" Tadashi casually strode into their bedroom, carrying a breakfast tray with two plates filled with food and a newspaper on it. Hiro was lying in bed, his injured leg propped up on a pillow.

Hiro threw a rolled up pair of socks at him. "I'm not little or an invalid." The socks hit Tadashi square on the top of his head, bounced off and tumbled to the ground.

Tadashi ignored the projectile. "I hate to break it to you _little_ bro but you're shorter than Gogo and she's tiny." Tadashi placed the tray down onto Hiro's work desk before handing a plate piled high with eggs, bacon and toast to Hiro. The meal reminded Hiro a lot of the one he'd stolen from Tadashi the day he recovered from his fever only this time there was also a small stack of flap jacks added to the mix.

"Yeah, I wouldn't say that anywhere where she can hear you." Hiro grabbed the fork and began to shovel food into his mouth. "She'd kick your ass six ways till Sunday just to prove that her size doesn't prevent her from doing exactly that."

Tadashi chuckled, sitting down at Hiro's desk to dig into his own food. "You have a point." He agreed easily, picking up the newspaper that had been lying beside his plate. "She really is, as you so nicely pointed out in the garage the other day, a package of dynamite."

Hiro flushed in sudden remembered embarrassment, hunching over his plate of food in a futile effort to hide the red tint to his cheeks. He could see the smirk on Tadashi's lips but decided to ignore it, choosing instead to focus on the food before him. And so, the two brothers fell into companionable silence, the click of their forks connecting with their plates broken by the occasional rustle of Tadashi turning the pages of the newspaper he was now engrossed in.

That is… until Tadashi tensed in reaction to something that caught his eye on one of the pages. "Hiro?" Tadashi ventured warily into the comfortable silence that surrounded them, his tone tense and filled with sudden discomfort.

"Hmm?" Hiro replied absently, still distracted by the food on his plate.

"You said there was no fire at the SFIT showcase when you pulled the fire alarm, right?"

Hiro stilled, his bacon laden fork frozen half way to his open mouth. The showcase fire… He thought they were done with the topic. Tadashi was convinced he was going crazy and wanted him to seek professional help. He'd agreed to think about it in the hopes of buying himself some time to figure things out. Why was Tadashi bringing the topic back up less than twelve hours later? Hiro dropped his hand and carefully placed the fork back down on his plate before turning to face Tadashi, trepidation swirling in his gaze. "Y… yeah." He stuttered warily, his entire body tense as he waited for the inevitable blow that was sure to follow.

"I think I may owe you an apology." Tadashi folded the newspaper around the article he was busy reading before holding it out to Hiro in silent explanation.

Wait.

What?

Tadashi was _apologizing_?

Well, that was unexpected. Hiro reached out and took the newspaper from Tadashi, suddenly curious as to what could have caused Tadashi's unexpected shift in opinion. Dropping his gaze he began to read the article Tadashi had identified.

**_Arson Suspected at SFIT Showcase._ **

_SFIT – Fire fighters were alerted to a fire at the annual San Fransokyo Institute of Technology when someone pulled one of the fire alarms located in the building. Initially suspecting a false alarm on arriving at the scene, fire fighters ran into the building to investigate. Upon entering the building they discovered the beginnings of a fire originating in the far corner of the hall. Upon dousing the flames they discovered signs that appeared to indicate that someone had attempted to tamper with the experiment located there._

_Eyewitnesses report that a small young boy pulled the alarm located near the stage that was used by students to present their projects at the annual SFIT showcase where there were hundreds in attendance. SFIT personal have expressed the opinion that his early detection of and reaction to the fire quite possibly saved several lives as many of the experiments located at in the building have been identified to be highly flammable and could have easily caused an explosion should the fire have managed to reach them._

_Fire fighters, wonder, however, how he managed to detect the fire so early and question why he chose to run across the hall to pull a fire alarm when there was one located just 50 yards away. The cause of the fire is currently unknown and is currently under investigation by the San Fransokyo Fire Department._

Hiro finished reading the article before dropping his arm down onto the bed, turning to stare at Tadashi in disbelief. He was right! There _was_ a fire at the SFIT showcase! Which meant he wasn't going crazy, right? "There was a fire." He whispered hoarsely, glancing back down at the newspaper in his hands. "I wasn't wrong. There was a fire." He repeated, attempting use the words to chase away the lingering doubt that remained in his mind.

The doubt was not so easily swayed…

"Yes. There was." Tadashi agreed reaching out to take the newspaper back from Hiro. Lifting the page, he scanned through the article one more time before carefully placing the newspaper down onto Hiro's desk. He then turned to face Hiro once more, a serious expression on his face. "Hiro… please don't take this the wrong way but I have to ask. Did you start it?"

Wait.

"WHAT?!" Hiro couldn't believe what he was hearing. Tadashi was accusing him of starting a fire and expected him NOT to take it the wrong way?! "You think I'm into ARSON?! What kind of person do you think I am?!" Hiro yelled, consumed by a sudden wave of hurt and anger. "What reason could I possible have try to burn down the showcase building and then pull the fire alarm to stop it?! Just because I participated in a couple of bot-fights in the past doesn't mean I…"

"I don't really think you started the fire, Hiro!" Tadashi yelled, cutting Hiro's rant short. "Just breathe, Hiro. I believe you." Tadashi reached out to catch Hiro's plate before he accidentally threw it off the bed, calmly placing it beside his own.

Wait… Tadashi believed him? "Then why?" Hiro cut the question short, hurt preventing him from voicing the rest. If Tadashi didn't think he had started the fire, why had he asked him if he had?

"The newspaper article says the fire fighters are wondering how you could have triggered the fire alarm so early and I had to ask, okay?" Tadashi explained, reaching out to grab hold of one of Hiro's hands, clinging to it in an effort to comfort and ground him. "It's a question you're going to be asked the moment they figure out you're the one that pulled the fire alarm and I had to be sure you're ready for it."

Tadashi was right. That was exactly what the authorities were going to ask him when they figured out he pulled a fire alarm before the fire had even managed to start burning properly. He'd been so focused on trying to keep Tadashi safe from the fire that he hadn't even considered how his actions might be interpreted by someone who didn't understand Hiro's motives thus proving yet another statement Tadashi had made true. Hiro _was_ reckless and _did_ have a tendency to leap into situations without properly considering the consequences of his own actions. Hiro had just potentially gotten himself into some serious trouble. Assuming, of course, his memories were actually real and not a result of his mind twisting everything around. In the latter case he could simply plead insanity.

"So… you believe me now?" Hiro asked cautiously, hope rising in his chest. If Tadashi believed him, everything would work out. He'd finally have someone on his side and they'd figure it all out… together.

That hope was, unfortunately, rather quickly dashed. "About the fire, yes." Tadashi said, leaning forward to meet Hiro's eyes. "I still think you need to see someone about everything else. You probably did see something when you went back into the showcase building and came to the conclusion that something was wrong. You have amazing gut instincts when it comes to things like that. You pulled the fire alarm and got everyone out of harm's way but you're still struggling to separate reality from fantasy and we need to figure out why. The showcase fire was nowhere near big enough to kill anyone, let alone me and the evidence of tampering is just speculation at this stage. News articles do like to sensationalize things."

"But it had the potential to be." Hiro whispered, still struggling to hold onto the slim conviction that he wasn't insane. "The newspaper article said some of the experiments were highly flammable and could have easily caused an explosion."

"That is just conjecture." Tadashi countered Hiro's argument. "All fires have the potential to get wildly out of hand and you don't need an explosion to kill a bunch of people either. We're just fortunate this one didn't get the opportunity to. If you hadn't rushed back in there to fetch your neurotransmitter, things could have ended differently, which reminds me…" Tadashi stood, releasing Hiro's hand to make his way to his side of the room.

He returned a few moments later, holding Hiro's neurotransmitter out to him. "I believe this is yours. You dropped it when you tackled me down the stairs."

Hiro mutely reached out to take hold of his neurotransmitter, the cool metal only reminding him of everything that was going wrong. Tadashi still didn't believe him. Despite everything he had done, everything he had said and his strange knowledge of the future, Tadashi still thought he was going crazy and Hiro… Hiro didn't know what to believe anymore.

"While, we're on the topic, why did you feel the sudden urge to go fetch it?" Tadashi asked pulling Hiro out of his sudden downward spiral and back into the present. "You could have just gone to fetch later, along with your micro-bots. They lock the showcase building overnight, you know. It would have been perfectly safe there."

Only it wouldn't…

"Because…" _Because I wanted to keep Callaghan from getting his hands on it._ Hiro stared at the slim band in his hands wondering how something so innocent could have caused so much trouble. It hadn't occurred to him that his invention could be used for anything other than the purpose he had created it for. Back then he hadn't imagined it could be used for anything but good. Callaghan had proved him dead wrong… or had he? "Because it could be very dangerous if it fell into the wrong hands." Hiro clarified looking up at his brother once more with the sudden realization that it didn't matter. It didn't matter if his memories were real, a product of time travel, or not as caused by a delusional mind put under stress. The end result was still the same. His micro-bots were a dangerous invention and he probably shouldn't have created them to begin with. Why did he only realize this now? When it was already too late to do anything about it?

Or was it?

Pulling his sheets off of him, Hiro moved to stand.

"What the…" Tadashi leaped forward to shove Hiro back into bed. "Where exactly do you think you're going? You need to stay off that foot for a couple of days, until the swelling goes down and we can get it into a cast."

"Let go Tadashi." Hiro reached up to pry Tadashi's arms off of him. "I need to go fetch my micro-bots." His efforts yielded absolutely no results. He'd just discovered one major downside of being back in his fourteen year old body: Tadashi was physically a lot stronger than him. What? Even though Tadashi had presented him with a very good argument to the contrary, Hiro was not going to discount the theory that he may have actually traveled back in time until it was concretely disproved!

"We can't."

"What do you mean we can't?!" Hiro demanded, resorting to wiggling in Tadashi's grasp.

"Stop it, Hiro!" Tadashi snapped, giving him a small shake. "You're going to hurt yourself."

Hiro stilled, only to quirk an eyebrow at Tadashi in challenge. "I do know how to use a pair of crutches." Hiro pointed out logically, hoping reason would work where brute force had failed. "This isn't the first time I've injured my ankle, you know."

Tadashi pulled a face. "Don't remind me."

"I'm sure Aunt Cass has photographs somewhere."

"Hiro." Tadashi sighed in exasperation, sitting down on the bed beside him, still keeping a firm grasp on Hiro. This wasn't the first time they had a similar battle of wills either and Tadashi knew better than to release his little brother before they came to some kind of agreement. "We can't go to the showcase building at this stage because it is currently being investigated for signs of arson. I highly doubt the fire department is going to just let us waltz in there and remove things until they are done with it."

And there it was, Tadashi's infamous logic, always ready to prevent Hiro from doing the things he wanted to do.

"We don't know that they're still busy investigating it." Hiro argued, retaliating with his own logic.

"The newspaper article stated that they are."

"The newspaper article states that the fire department is still busy trying to determine the cause of the fire, not that they are actively still inside the building." Hiro pointed out. "They could have already retrieved all the evidence they need from the building and may have moved onto laboratory tests."

Tadashi sighed, releasing Hiro to run his hands through his own hair. Hiro remained where he was, waiting for Tadashi's logic to catch up to his own. "Why is this so important to you?" Tadashi asked softly.

"We have to fetch my micro-bots."

"I assumed that was what you were after." Tadashi dropped his hands back down, resting them in his lap. "But I want to know why. Why do we have to go fetch them today when we could just as well fetch them in a couple of days, when we receive official communication that we're allowed to enter the building?"

Hiro remained silent for a moment and allowed Tadashi's question to linger in the air for a moment before speaking, the weight of his words and the implications thereof, lying heavy between them.

"Because they need to be destroyed."

 


	14. Tenebrosity

**Tenebrosity**

"Remind me again why I agreed to this?" Tadashi whispered. Tadashi and Hiro were in the showcase building, creeping through it in an attempt to retrieve Hiro's micro-bots. Okay, in the interest of full disclosure… Tadashi was the one that was doing the creeping. Hiro was hitching a ride on his back as Tadashi didn't want him placing any weight on his broken ankle.

"Because you're my brother and you love me?" Hiro answered, looking around the dimly lit hall. Someone really needed to install better windows into the building. The sparse daylight that managed to filter through the windows on the far right of the hall wasn't nearly enough to light the large space within. Especially when most of those windows were obscured by wooden screens and large experiments.

"Don't push your luck, Hiro." Tadashi readjusted Hiro's weight on his back. "No amount of love justifies resorting to a life of crime. We're not supposed to be in here and you know it. All the entrances have been cordoned off by police tape, just like I told you they would be. This is tantamount to breaking and entering."

"Yet here we are." Hiro declared, waving an arm in illustration. They were in a particularly dark corner of the hall, heading gingerly towards the stage. It was slow going as the way forward was blocked by a myriad of experiments still scattered about the hall.

"Hiro." Tadashi said in a waning tone. "I can still turn around and leave."

"No, nonononono!" Hiro said in a rush, reaching out to grab hold of Tadashi's shoulders. "Not until we fetch my micro-bots. I promise, I'll behave."

Tadashi snorted in disbelief. "I'm surprised the word is even in your vocabulary seeing as I highly doubt you know the meaning of it." He carefully stepped around the podium that contained what appeared to be two helmets with several wires coming out of them, barely missing tripping over it in the dim to non-existent light. "I can't see a thing." He complained.

"Wait. I have something that might help." Hiro announced suddenly wiggling on Tadashi's back, twisting in order to reach into the pockets of his hoodie. The neurotransmitter attached to the belt loop of his pants swing with the motion, gently connecting with his thigh. He'd brought it with the intent to use it in order to get all his micro-bots home in one trip.

"Hey!" Tadashi stumbled to the right, Hiro's sudden shift in weight nearly sending them tumbling to the ground.

"Sorry." Hiro stilled and allowed Tadashi to regain his footing before cautiously reaching into the pocket of his hoodie. He removed his hand a few seconds later, gripping a torch which he promptly turned on, illuminating the space before them. "Viola! Let there be light. Am I a genius or what?"

"You couldn't have pulled that out sooner?" Tadashi asked dryly, ignoring Hiro's self-praise in favor of resuming his journey forward. "Like, I don't know, before I walked into the sphere stand earlier?" Tadashi had already stumbled into three stands on their journey in and wasn't exactly impressed to find out his suffering could have been avoided if his little brother had just paused to use his head a bit more.

"I completely forgot I had it." Hiro responded sheepishly, directing the light towards the right corner of the stage. Hiro, Tadashi and the gang had stowed the bins that contained Hiro's micro-bots there shortly after Hiro's presentation, intending to retrieve them at a later stage. Having expected to find the bins missing, Hiro heaved a sigh of relief when the light reflected off of the familiar light blue plastic. "There they are!" Hiro raised himself on Tadashi's back, momentarily forgetting their precarious position in his relief and excitement.

Tadashi stumbled again, running forward a few steps in a bid to regain his balance. "Hiro! There's a person busy carrying you here. I'm not a horse. You're heavier than you think and I can't exactly focus on making sure I don't run into anything _and_ make sure I don't fall over in reaction to your antics."

"Sorry." Hiro repeated shifting his weight back down once more. "But you can let me go now." He moved to twist out of Tadashi's grasp.

"Hiro!" Tadashi attempted to readjust his grip in a bid to keep hold of Hiro. "You're not supposed to put any weight on that ankle."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Hiro managed to slip his uninjured leg out of Tadashi's grasp. "I'll hop." He slid down Tadashi's back and allowed his good leg to connect with the ground forcing Tadashi to release his injured one for fear of taking them both down. The moment he was free, he made good on his promise and hopped over towards the plastic bins silently counting them as he approached.

"Hiro." Tadashi hissed in reprimand, close on his heels. "That was dangerous. I could have dropped you and we both could have gotten hurt. You can't just…"

"Quiet. Just give me one moment." Hiro raised a hand to silence Tadashi, a worried frown creasing his brow. He raised a hand and began to re-count the bins silently mouthing each number as he went.

"Did you just tell me to be quiet?" Tadashi asked in a low tone, anger and disbelief creeping into his voice. "You can't just tell me to…"

"That can't be right." Hiro exclaimed in a hushed whisper, cutting Tadashi off for the second time in a row. He turned to face Tadashi, eyes wide.

The expression in Hiro's eyes put Tadashi on high alert, sending all thoughts of lecturing his little brother out of his mind. "What can't be right?"

"We brought twelve bins full of micro-bots, right?" Hiro asked.

"Yes, we did. You wanted to create a big impact and figured that would be more achievable with twelve bins full than with two." Tadashi pointed out. "Rightly so I might add. Your presentation blew everyone away."

"Well one of them appears to be missing." Hiro declared, turning the torch back towards the bins, illuminating the eleven bins stacked neatly against the stage. The space that should have contained a twelfth bin was pointedly empty.

Tadashi stepped forward with a frown, taking the torch from Hiro to see from himself. He quickly re-counted the bins just to make sure Hiro's calculations were correct before moving the torch to illuminate the rest of the stage in the hopes of finding a displaced bin. The bin had to be somewhere after all. It couldn't simply vanish into thin air. "Maybe we didn't stack them correctly when we packed them away." He theorized, squinting into the shadows. "Or maybe we missed one."

"No, we didn't." Hiro retorted. "We fetched all twelve. I know everyone was excited and we were all talking a mile a minute about my acceptance letter but I counted them just before we left the showcase building. There were twelve bins and now there are eleven which means someone stole one of them." Dread coiled in his gut, the dark suspicion that Callaghan had already managed to get his hands on some of his micro-bots forming in his mind.

"Let's not jump to conclusions, Hiro." Tadashi declared moving the flashlight around the area in the hopes of spotting something they had missed. His words told Hiro that Tadashi still wasn't on board with Hiro's wild theories but his body language was starting to shift introducing a more cautious stance to his entire demeanor. Tadashi was on the alert for danger which could only mean one thing… Hiro was finally making progress!

Wait…

Did that shadow just move?

Leaping forward, Hiro grabbed the torch from Tadashi and ran towards the shadow he had spotted when Tadashi had illuminated the far side of the stage, completely ignoring the sharp pain that coursed through him the moment he put weight on his injured ankle.

"Hiro!" Tadashi called out and ran after him, his tone indicating that he more than a little unhappy. That probably had more to do with the fact that Hiro was now running on his injured leg than anything else but Hiro didn't have time to explain what was going on. "Get back here!"

The shadow was getting away.

"Hiro!" Tadashi tried again, his outcry followed by the sound of hit body impacting with something hard which quickly was followed by a few choice cuss words that Hiro most definitely hadn't realized were in his brother's vocabulary. It seemed Tadashi was not a perfect as he liked everyone to believe. Hiro filed _that_ information away for later appraisal beneath the following category: Potential Blackmail Material and continued to run, not even pausing to check if his brother was ok. It was, after all, as Tadashi had so accurately pointed out a few minutes earlier, not the first object Tadashi had stumbled into since entering the building and Hiro had more pressing matters to take care of.

The shadow shifted once more and headed away from Hiro, towards one of the exits. Oh no you don't! Hiro put on an extra burst of speed, biting his lip through the pain that continued to jar through his nerves each time he took a stride forward. Someone was here. That someone was more than likely Callaghan and Hiro wasn't about to let a broken ankle stop him from catching the man in question. Not when he finally had proof within his grasp. Proof he could use to convince Tadashi that Callaghan wasn't the man Tadashi thought he was… Proof that he could use to convince Tadashi, and perhaps himself, that he wasn't going crazy.

Tadashi simply _had_ to believe him once he had Callaghan in his grasp. Right?

The shadow suddenly twisted and changed direction, heading past the robotic clapping hands in a bid to shake Hiro off his tail but Hiro was not so easily dissuaded. He easily changing course to keep up with his target. Even though his younger body didn't have the training his older self, had managed to attain, his older mind more than made up for it. Years of chasing down various perpetrators had taught him to anticipate such tactics thus providing him with that vital edge he needed in order to catch up. Two strides later he had his target in range.

Got you!

Transferring all of his energy to his feet, Hiro launched himself off of his good foot and tackled the fleeing man. His shoulder connected with the fleeing shadows midriff and the two of them went tumbling to the ground, rolling a few times across the floor before coming to a halt with Hiro seated on top of his prey. Lifting the hand that still held the torch, Hiro directed the light down onto his target to face to face with an all too familiar white and red mask.

Yokai!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was supposed to continue into the next but once again the chapter simply got out of hand forcing me to split them into two once more. On the bright side I have been granted a momentary reprieve from everyone's reactions to what is coming next.


	15. Conflagration

**Conflagration**

"Callaghan." Hiro hissed, the single word filled more hate than he realized he'd harbored. Would you look at that? It would appear he hadn't managed to forgive Callaghan after all.

About to reach up to push Hiro off, the figure froze revealing his surprise when Hiro uttered his name.

A bitter laugh escaped Hiro's lips. "Didn't think I'd know it was you, did you?" Hiro reached down to snatch the mask off, revealing Callaghan's startled features. "I know all about you." He leaned in, flashing the torch directly into Callaghan's eyes. "I know all about Project Silent Sparrow, Abigail and your plans to take revenge on Alistair Krei. You're the one that stole one of my bins filled with my micro-bots, aren't you?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Callaghan scoffed.

"I'm talking about your plan to rebuild the portal so you can take everything Alistair Krei built away from him because you feel he took everything away from you when Project Silent Sparrow failed to deliver what he promised."

A flash of anger crossed Callaghan's face before all traces of emotion faded to be quickly replaced by an impassive mask. "You don't know anything, boy!" Callaghan snapped shoving Hiro off of him. He got up and dusted himself off, his dark cape swaying with the movement seeming to merge with the shadows that surrounded him. It would have been a graceful sight if not for the darkness both his attire and surroundings implied. Hiro moved to follow only to be interrupted...

"Professor Callaghan?" Tadashi exclaimed in surprise, finally catching up to Hiro and his quarry, having spent several minutes stumbling around in the dark as a result of Hiro leaving him alone, without a torch. "What are you doing here?"

Callaghan glanced to Tadashi before smiling congenially. "I thought I should probably check on the experiments. Some of them are highly flammable. We wouldn't want any accidents, now would we?" He finished, turning to face Hiro with his last statement. His words were friendly on the surface, appearing to come from a genuine place of concern but Hiro detected the threat lying just beneath. He may have one Hamada brother fooled into thinking he was God's gift to mankind but Hiro knew better. That friendly smile concealed a cold calculating mind that was only interested in revenge and didn't care who was hurt along the way. This was it... Hiro's chance to change things. If only he could shift Callaghan's attention away from his current course of events.

"You don't have to do this, Callaghan." Hiro replied ignoring the game Callaghan was trying to start. Hiro didn't need to convince Tadashi that he was in the right here. Not yet, anyway. The person he needed to get onto his side at this stage was Callaghan himself. "You don't need to go after Alistair Krei." Hiro raised his hands in surrender dangling Callaghan's mask from the fingers of his right hand, his torch still firmly held within his left.

"I keep telling you. I don't know what you're talking about." Callaghan said still trying to hide his true nature from Tadashi and perhaps Hiro himself. He quirked a questioning eyebrow before turning to face Tadashi, seemingly at a complete loss. "Kids and their imaginations. There is not telling what they are going to come up with these days. Do you perhaps know what he is going on about?" He asked, directing the innocent sounding question towards Tadashi.

Tadashi frowned in confusion glancing between Hiro and his Professor before taking a step towards Callaghan, silently taking his side. "Hiro? What's going on?" Tadashi asked softly, concern reflected in his eyes.

"Abigail is alive!" Hiro tried again, completely ignoring Tadashi. It hurt. It hurt that Tadashi was once again siding with Professor Callaghan despite his beloved Professor's suspicious actions, attire and presence in the showcase building but Hiro didn't have time to deal with that right now. He had bigger problems to address. "I can help you get her back. We just need to fix the portal. Once it is up and running again, I can go in there and…"

"You think I'm going to let some smart ass, know it all kid tell me what to do?" Callaghan roared, reaching out to grab hold of Tadashi, pulling him in towards his chest. An instant later the light from Hiro's torch reflected off of the cold hard steel of the blade Callaghan had pressed firmly against Tadashi's throat. "You don't know anything!" Callaghan yelled, revealing his true self in the face of Hiro's persistence. "He took her from me! Alistair Krei took everything from me when he sent Abigail into that machine and now it's his turn! I'll make sure he gets his judgement and there is nothing a  _child,"_ The word was filled with contempt. "like you can do about it so you can stop trying to play the hero and just tell me where the hell it is?!"

"P…professor Callaghan?" Tadashi chocked out in shock, tensing in Callaghan's arms, the bite of steel as unexpected to him as it had been to Hiro. "What... What are you doing?"

"I told you he wasn't a good guy!" Hiro called out, heated anger and cold fear waging war within him. His mind raced, desperately looking for a way to get Tadashi away from Callaghan and the deadly blade that was now pressed against his throat. None of this would be happening if Tadashi had only believed in him when it counted. "But would you believe me? No." Hiro's words were bitter. "You were so convinced that he was such an upstanding guy that you were more willing to believe that I was going crazy than the fact that he might actually do something wrong and look where that's gotten us?" The words spilled out before Hiro even realized they were there and everything about them was wrong. This entire situation was all kinds of wrong. Now was not the time to be airing his grievances at Tadashi when he had more important things to think about, like keeping Tadashi alive for instance.

"Hiro, I…"

"Enough!" Callaghan swung Tadashi around cutting what he was about to say short. "Tell me where it is or I kill him, right here, right now." He snapped at Hiro, digging the blade further into Tadashi's skin. A trickle of blood trailed down Tadashi's throat, traces of fear flickering through his dark brown eyes.

"Okay, okay!" Hiro took a cautious step forward, raising his arms even higher, his heart beating rapidly in his throat. "My brother and I will argue later." He sent Tadashi a pointed stare before turning his gaze back to Callaghan. "What do you want?"

"Don't play games with me, boy." Callaghan snarled. "You know exactly what I want. The neurotransmitter you used to control your micro-bots. I've searched this place several times over and I cannot find it even though I saw you place it on the stage. Your micro-bots are useless without it and I want it. So, where is it?"

And so everything came a full circle, bringing Hiro back to the confrontation he'd fought so hard to avoid with his brother's life at stake. Callaghan was determined to gain control of his micro-bots and there appeared to be nothing Hiro could do to stop it. He carefully transferred the torch from his left hand into his right, balancing it and the mask before reaching down with his now free left hand. Tracing the seams of his khaki shorts he found and carefully unhooked the loop holding the neurotransmitter to his cargo shorts before lifting the device in question for Callaghan to see. "It's right here. Let my brother go and I'll give it to you." Hiro said taking another cautious step forward.

"Hiro! No!" Tadashi exclaimed. "You can't let him have it. I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you told me Callaghan was not the man I thought he was but you can't let him have it. You said it yourself. You can't let your micro-bots fall into the wrong hands! They can be dangerously misused!"

"I'd stop talking if I were you!" Callaghan yelled, pulling Tadashi's head back in order to further expose the tender flesh of Tadashi's throat. "This is between your brother and me. You'd do well to remember that before I accidentally do something the two of you are going to sorely regret." Another trickle of blood joined the first one, staining the collar of Tadashi's white shirt red.

"Callaghan! Stop!" Hiro took another step forward. "Don't hurt him. Please. I'll do anything you say. Just… Let him go." Why? Why were they here? Why was Tadashi's life once again in danger? After everything he had done to avoid it? Where had it all gone so horribly wrong? He glanced at Tadashi once more and was hit full force in the heart by the terror and regret he saw in his brother's eyes. This was not how things were supposed to go. 'I'm sorry.' Tadashi mouthed, silently repeating his earlier words and for moment Hiro though Tadashi was once again apologizing for not believing him… that is until he saw Tadashi's muscles tense.

"Tadashi! No!" Hiro leaped forward to stop Tadashi from doing something stupid but it was already too late. Drawing on all his martial arts training, Tadashi reached up, grabbed hold of Callaghan's arms and flipped him over his back. Callaghan flew over Tadashi's head and landed with a dull thud upon the ground and for a moment it seemed that everything was going to be okay. Tadashi had succeeded in throwing Callaghan. Callaghan was right where they wanted him and Tadashi… Tadashi was free of the monster's grasp.

Only…

Only life was far too cruel to be that simple or clean.

"Ta… Tadashi!" Hiro cried out in anguish, his neurotransmitter, torch and the white Yokai mask falling forgotten to the ground as he launched himself forward, rushing to reach Tadashi's side. Reaching up Hiro grabbed hold of Tadashi's throat and clamped down on it with trembling hands, terror and despair pumping through his veins. Warm crimson blood seeped through his fingers, staining his hands and the sleeves of his hoodie even as he desperately tried to hold it in. Tadashi's rash movements had sent the knife blade deep into his throat, opening up a gaping wound that released the very essence of Tadashi's lifeblood.

"Hey, bonehead." Tadashi rasped collapsing down onto the ground, taking Hiro down with him. "You… were supposed to… to take… Calla… ghan down."

"I'm not the bonehead." Hiro replied, sobs shaking his body as he continued to fight to stem the blood flow that was staining his hands red. "You are…" A dull thud accompanied his statement but he ignored it, no longer interested in what Callaghan was doing. The only thing that mattered was trying to keep Tadashi alive. "What were you thinking?" Hiro trembled, taking a deep shuddering breath in a bid to fight back the grief that threatened to consume him. Glass shattered somewhere in the room. "Throwing a man that had a blade pressed to your throat. Of all the idiotic, boneheaded, stupid…"

WHOOSH!

The room was suddenly illuminated by a bright orange light, tearing Hiro's horrified gaze away from Tadashi.

Gone…

Callaghan, the Yokai mask and his neurotransmitter were all gone and in their place was a bright orange ring, angry flames leaping ravenously up into the air consuming everything in their path. The showcase building was burning. Glancing back down at Tadashi, Hiro saw his own terror reflected in Tadashi's eyes. "We…" Tadashi gasped struggling to breathe even as he forced the words past his lips. "have to… go."

Hiro nodded and released Tadashi's throat to pull off his hoodie. Shoving the fabric against Tadashi's throat he used the sleeves of the jacket to tie it into place, silently cursing his trembling hands. Now was not the time. He couldn't afford to panic. He needed to think clearly so he could get both of them out before…

FWHOOSH! CRACK!

One of the experiments in their vicinity caught alight sending bright red sparks soaring up towards the ceiling, to hungrily lap at the supporting beams located there.

NOW! They needed to get out NOW! Reaching beneath Tadashi's back Hiro fought to pull his brother up, struggling to support both his own weight and that of his brother. "Come on Tadashi." Hiro tried to keep his panic out of his voice. "We'll get out of this. We're ok. Just put one foot in front of the other." Hiro took a step forward, his breath escaping him in pained gasps each time he put any weight on his injured ankle.

_Don't fail me now. Please don't fail me now. I promise to stay off of you for the next six months if I have to, just don't fail me now._

Tadashi fought to help him, attempting to carry his own weight but blood loss was working against him and he tumbled to the ground a mere two steps later, taking Hiro down with him just as a loud CRACK rent the air asunder. A flaming beam tumbled to the ground landing on Tadashi's leg and he released a torn gurgling cry of pain the moment it connected. It was a sound Hiro would never forget and one he'd hoped never to hear. "Go!..." Tadashi reached out to push Hiro away. "Go without me…" Tadashi's words were filled with desperation and there was no way Hiro was going to heed them.

"NO!" Hiro yelled, rushing towards the burning beam. "I'm not leaving without you!" He reached out and grabbed hold of the burning metal ignoring the searing pain that coursed through his skin. He was burning, his flesh turning red and then black and he didn't care because this time… this time he had something to fight for. He heaved.

"Burning is not…" Tadashi whimpered and curled in on himself taking a few deep labored breaths, fighting to say what needed to be said, "…a good way to go."

"I know." Hiro replied, tears pouring down his face while he continued his fight to lift the burning beam that simply refused to budge. He knew. He knew very well what it felt like to be burnt alive and there was no way he was going to leave his brother to face that alone, not while he still had breath in his body.

"HIRO! GO!" The sheer volume Tadashi managed to achieve past the injury on his throat was surprising but his efforts were in vain. There was no way Hiro was going to leave him. He was not willing to lose Tadashi like this. Not again.

"I'm not going to just stand back and watch you die!" Hiro yelled in response. "NOT AGAIN!"

BOOSH! CRACK!

"HIRO! MOVE!"

Another beam tumbled to the ground…

THUNK!

… and connected with Hiro's head.

Sharp pain…

Swirling lights…

Followed inevitably by darkness.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though this chapter was planned from the moment I started this story, it seriously broke my heart to write. Before you all come after me, remember we are not done with this story yet… * Hides behind the couch * Wait did I say couch? I mean bed... yes look for me by my bed...


	16. Reboot

**Reboot**

_Indigo, violet, azure, lapis, violet, bacchus, magenta, fushia, mauve, saguaro blossom, ochre, pearl, snow, brilliant white. Hiro was surrounded by swirls of color that created a landscape worthy of van Gogh's Starry Night. The scene was eerily familiar, a vast landscape of twisted space that seemed to span the very infinity of the universe itself with no shape or form. He'd seen it before and that sense of familiarity is what caused him to turn, expecting to see a familiar companion at his side only to be bitterly disappointed when he encountered nothing but more of the same._

_Who had he been expecting to see? That single question was but one of many that coursed through his awareness, all demanding his attention, all without answer. Where was he? Why was he there? How long had he been there? And the most burning question of them all: Why did any of the answers matter?_

_He was drifting, weightless and free, surrounded by color and serenity. He was everything and nothing and something in between and nothing mattered. Or did it? Wait? This was wrong. This wasn't how this encounter was supposed to play out. He wasn't meant to be lost and alone, drifting through space with not a care of the world. He was supposed to be fighting._

_Fighting to reach her…_

_Flash – an image shot into his awareness - a capsule, brown hair and bright blue eyes…_

_Fighting to keep someone important at his side…_

_Flash – rapidly followed by a second image - a Japanese bell, white vinyl and brilliant red armor…_

_And most of all fighting to save his life…_

_Flash – short black hair, warm brown eyes and the familiar scent of grease, circuit boards and baked goods…_

_Tadashi!_

"Good morning, sleeping beauty. Time to rise and shine. Face the new day. Fight the good fight. You know the drill." A sharp spike of pain coursed through his head in reaction to the far too cheerful voice that was attempting to pull him away from dreamland and back into the land of the living.

Wait!

The land of the living?

Hadn't he just died?

Again?

Hiro's eyes flew open only to have the action instantly fill him with regret. Light flooded into his pupils triggering another spark of pain and a wave of nausea. Bring back the darkness, damn it! He quickly closed his eyes once more. Curling in on himself, Hiro groaned in pain and used one of his arms to cover his eyes in a bid to keep out the light that was threatening to trigger an explosion in his brain.

"Hiro? You okay?" Tadashi's cheerful banter was replaced by concern. He reached out to run a hand through the messy strands of Hiro's hair.

"I want pain meds." Hiro replied, unable to keep his misery out of his voice. To say that his head hurt would be an understatement. If felt like he had an army of little men all trying to drill their way out of his head all while Hiro attempted to stand still on a swaying ship, fighting to keep his balance while standing on one leg. Speaking of legs… his ankle was not much better, throbbing in protest, echoing the beat of the drilling going on in his head leading him to add, "And ice… lots and lots of ice."

"What's wrong?" Tadashi asked softly, still absently playing with Hiro's hair.

Hiro groaned. Leave it to Tadashi to interrogate him first… "Pain meds now, questions later." Hiro whimpered, flinching when a stray beam of light managed to slip past the fortress he was trying to maintain against it. "And could you also kill the lights?" Please… please oh please don't throw up. This crazy ship needed to find calmer waters and quickly!

"Okay." A rush of relief coursed through Hiro with Tadashi's acquiescence. Tadashi stood and moved over to the window. Hiro could hear him close the blinds before he turned and headed towards the door. "I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere."

Hiro snorted. Or at least he would have if he hadn't thought the action might finally send him over the edge and cause him to be sick. Where did Tadashi think he'd be going if he couldn't even open his eyes let alone get out of bed? Better question yet… where was he? The last thing Hiro remembered was the showcase fire and the beam that had fallen onto his head. Well that explained the headache. He'd been trying to save Tadashi who had had his throat slit by Callaghan.

Wait.

WHAT?!

Hiro's eyes flew open once more and this time they stayed that way despite the fresh waves of pain that coursed through him with the action. Tadashi! He needed to get to Tadashi before… before he… Before he died? But hadn't he just heard Tadashi's voice? Sitting up, Hiro moved to place his bare feet onto the ground before freezing in place to stare at his bare left foot. The bright orange strapping he remembered was gone. Hadn't he broken his ankle?

What on earth was going on?

Everything hurt. Just like it was supposed to. His head throbbed as a result of a beam falling onto it. His left ankle echoed that pain, exactly where he'd broken it and his hands… wait… his hands were a little tender but they didn't hurt anymore. Hiro lifted his hands and just as expected the burns that were supposed to be there were, just like his strapping… gone. Which could only mean one thing.

It had happened again!

Hiro had died and once again traveled into the past.

"I'm ba… Hey! Why are you getting up?" Tadashi strode into the room, adding weight to Hiro's suspicions. Tadashi was fit as a horse. There was not a scratch on him. No limp to indicate he'd been trapped beneath a burning beam and no knife scar on his throat to indicate that he'd been cut, his lifeblood seeping into Hiro's hands. Hiro could still feel the slick heat of it, flowing across his skin despite his best efforts to contain it.

Hiro's stomach lurched.

Leaping to his feet, Hiro rushed right past Tadashi heading straight towards the bathroom. He barely managed to reach it before throwing himself down to pray to the porcelain God before him. Tadashi, predictably, was not far behind kneeling down behind Hiro to rest a hand on his back, rubbing it soothingly. He waited silently for Hiro to finish heaving before handing him a couple of pain pills.

Hiro gratefully accepted them and much to Tadashi's surprise swallowed them dry. "You must be feeling sick if you're willingly taking medication." He commented still rubbing Hiro's back soothingly. "We should probably go see a doctor."

Hiro moved to shake his head only to groan in pain, resting it on the toilet instead. "Don't need a doctor. It's just a migraine."

"Since when do you suffer from migraines?" Tadashi asked, surprise in his tone.

"Since now." Hiro muttered, closing his eyes.

"Okaaaay." Tadashi reached over to wrap an arm around Hiro's back using it to support him as he began to lift him back onto his feet. "I think it's time to take this party back to bed."

Hiro allowed himself to be lifted, leaning into Tadashi's embrace. It felt so nice. Just to have his brother beside him, taking care of him, just like he used to. Why couldn't life just stay this simple? Hiro's head flopped to rest against Tadashi's chest. Though it would be nice if he was a little taller. Tadashi made him feel tiny. It didn't help that his growth spurt had been negated by travelling back into the past. So unfair.

Hiro stumbled when Tadashi attempted to take a step forward, his aching ankle collapsing beneath his weight. "Looks like we are doing this the hard way." Tadashi commented, easily swinging Hiro's slim form into his arms. So much better. The change in position allowed Hiro's head to rest on Tadashi's shoulder with the added bonus of not requiring Hiro to actually walk.

Yay for not walking!

Tadashi carried Hiro out of the bathroom and straight towards his bed, gently laying Hiro down onto the soft surface. The bed shifted beneath Hiro's weight before shifting again when Tadashi joined him, sitting down beside Hiro. "So, what am I doing with the ice?" Tadashi asked softly, lifting the ice pack he'd brought in demonstration.

Hiro squinted up at him, taking in the concern that colored his brother's warm brown eyes far too often before eyeing the neon green ice pack. What was it with him and neon colors recently? First the neon orange strapping and now a neon green ice pack? Why couldn't it just be a nice inoffensive blue? Oh well… Hiro pointed at his left ankle. "Just put it there."

"On your ankle?" Tadashi asked, frowning in confusion.

"Yup." Hiro confirmed, closing his eyes once more. "It hurts."

"Did you sprain it?" Tadashi asked, placing the cold pack onto Hiro's ankle.

"No. I broke it." Hiro mumbled, his mind drifting back towards sleep. That is until…

"WHAT?!" Tadashi leaped up off the bed, immediately lifting the ice pack to take a better look at Hiro's ankle. Oh yeah… Hiro shouldn't have said that. He hadn't broken his ankle in this timeline. Not yet anyway and trying to tell Tadashi that he'd traveled through time would only lead to Tadashi doubting his sanity… again.

"Just kidding! I'm just kidding!" Hiro sat up in a rush. He grabbed the ice pack away from Tadashi and plonked it back down onto his ankle, hiding said limb from Tadashi's sight. "I fell out of bed last night and twisted it."

Tadashi crossed his arms and scowled down at him. "That's not funny, Hiro. You shouldn't joke about such things."

"I know. I'm sorry." Hiro apologized flopping back down onto his bed, his ankle once again wrapped in the pack and disaster safely averted. Note to self: Fix mind to mouth filter. ASAP! But first, sleep. It was really difficult to think past the men now hammering at his skull. Hey! It was an improvement on drilling.

Hiro's bed shifted again, Tadashi's presence once more at his side. "Get some sleep." Tadashi reached out to run a hand through Hiro's hair again, using the action to soothe him. It was something Tadashi did a lot having picked up the habit shortly after their parents died. It served as a comfort to both Hiro and Tadashi, the simple touch reminding them both that they always had each other. It was something Hiro had always taken for granted. Until Tadashi died that is.

Twice.

Which reminded him. He still hadn't managed to figure out how he had managed to go back in time in the first place, yet here he was, reliving the same time span for a _third_ time. How was that even possible? Or was he? "Tadashi?" Hiro asked cautiously.

"Hmm?" Tadashi replied, still absently playing with Hiro's hair.

"When is the SFIT showcase?"

"In two months, why?" Tadashi's fingers danced over the crease on Hiro's brow before coming to a stop as Tadashi's mind finally caught up with the implications of the conversation they were having. "Wait. How do you know about SFIT's annual showcase?"

Okay, suspicion confirmed. He _was_ back at square one. It looked like his plan to save Tadashi had in fact failed resulting in both their deaths. Hiro shuddered at the thought. He'd just died. AGAIN! How on earth was he supposed to keep Tadashi alive if he couldn't even keep _himself_ alive?

"Hiro?" Tadashi's prompt thankfully pulled him away from his downward spiral moments before Hiro's rising panic had time to consume him.

"Hmm?" Hiro echoed Tadashi's earlier absent response, forcing the negative thoughts that threatened his sanity to the back of his mind. He'd deal with them later. When he was feeling better and actually had the energy to. Or better yet, never. He should just lock them in the back of his mind and throw away the key.

"How do you know about SFIT's annual showcase?" Tadashi repeated.

Careful Hiro… Keep your answer vague. You can't tell Tadashi the truth because that will take you back down the road that led to both your death and his at Callaghan's hand in a showcase fire that occurred a mere day after the original fire in the original timeline. Who would have thought? "I don't exactly live under a rock you know." Hiro's reply was cocky and self-assured. It was the best way to distract Tadashi's lie detector. "I know everything!" Hiro bragged, piling it on. If he was going to show off he may as well do it properly, right?

"You've never shown an interest in my school before." Tadashi commented, tracing Hiro's eyebrows before settling his hands at Hiro's temples, gently massaging the pain points located there in an attempt to ease Hiro's headache. "Does this sudden interest mean you're finally ready to give up your lucrative career in bot fighting in favor of getting a proper education?"

"I gave up bot-fighting two y… weeks ago!" Hiro quickly caught his near slip narrowly avoiding disaster yet again. His mind to mouth filter was obviously still broken but the marginal improvement in its function was greatly appreciated nonetheless.

"Is that why I caught you fighting the Fujitas just last night?" Tadashi flicked Hiro on the forehead in light reprimand.

"Okay, so I _thought_ about quitting bot fighting two weeks ago. The fight with the Fujitas was my final build up to tonight where I planned to fight the legendary Yama. If I'm going to go down, I may as well do it with a bang, right? Leave a legacy behind that makes sure everyone remembers me for years to come." The best way to conceal a lie is among the truth.

Tadashi sighed. "That's not the kind of legacy you should be leaving behind. You have the ability to do so much more, you know. I'll never understand…"

"I know." Hiro agreed, opening his eyes to peer up at Tadashi's face, waiting for Tadashi's shock. He knew exactly how to throw his big brother off and was not above milking the situation for all it was worth. "Which is why I'm thinking of using the showcase to apply to SFIT."

"…why you insist on wasting you talent on something like bot-fighting when you could be doing something great," Tadashi continued to ramble still stuck in lecture mode. "Something like… wait." Tadashi's mind finally registered what Hiro had said. "Did you just say you're going to apply to SFIT?"

There it was! The shell-shocked expression Hiro had been expecting. Hiro grinned, mischief sparkling in his eyes before quickly replacing the expression with the most innocent one in his arsenal of tricks. "I don't know, did I?"

"Don't mess with me Hiro." Tadashi gave him a _look_. "I heard you say that you were thinking of using the showcase to apply to SFIT."

"If you heard me say that, why did you ask me if that was what I said?" Hiro retaliated.

"Hiro." Tadashi growled, his tone exasperated.

"Okay, okay, relax big bro." Hiro's grin returned. "You heard right. I'm going to apply to SFIT."

"FINALLY!" Tadashi exclaimed, reaching out to embrace Hiro in his sudden excitement. "That's FANTASTIC NEWS, HIRO!" Hiro flinched, a combination of the Tadashi's increase in volume and his overeager embrace sending a new spark of pain coursing through his head. The whimper that slipped past his lips drew Tadashi's attention to Hiro's predicament. "Sorry." Tadashi whispered, gently placing Hiro back down onto the bed. "I forgot about the headache. Get some sleep and we can talk about this in more detail once you're feeling better." Tadashi stood and turned to leave.

"Tadashi?"

Tadashi paused, glancing back down at Hiro. "Yes?"

"Would you…" Hiro licked dry lips, his words escaping him on a mere whisper. His eyes drifted closed, the medication Tadashi has given him finally kicking in and threatening to pull him under but he couldn't give in to it. Not until… "Would you please stay?"

A moment of silence stretched out between them followed by the rustle of clothing. Hiro's bed dipped and a warm body settled beside him, large arms drawing him into a comfortable embrace. The familiar scent of grease, circuit boards and baked goods filtered into his senses telling him that for now, all was right with the world.

Hiro fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is some fluff to make up for the angst in the previous chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it.


	17. Larceny

**Larceny**

Hiro had given this careful consideration. He'd thought about it long and hard all through the day following his unexpected return into the past and well into the night. Worried that he might be catching something, Tadashi had forced him to stay in bed the day following his migraine even though Hiro had insisted that he was fine. This had given him a lot of time to analyse everything that had gone wrong the last time he had unexpectedly found himself in the past.

First and foremost, he'd given far too much away to Tadashi. Instead of providing him with someone to lean on, it had led Tadashi to doubt his sanity. To be fair, he had at one point doubted his _own_ sanity. Second, he'd given Callaghan the opportunity to commit his crime. The fact that he'd all but handed his neurotransmitter to Callaghan after fighting so hard to keep it out of his hands was just the cherry on the cake. Looking back on it now he realized his plan of action had been idiotic from the get go. What made him think Callaghan would believe him when he told the man his daughter was still alive? He'd had no evidence to back the statement up. It was little wonder Callaghan had thought he was just some kid that had overstepped his bounds.

Everything he had done leading up to his point of failure had been one massive big mistake and having been given yet _another_ chance to make things right, he had to make sure not to repeat it. Desperate times called for desperate actions and so he had come up with Plan B. Tadashi was probably going to have his hide if he ever found out Hiro had once again slipped out in the dead of the night.

Pale light illuminated familiar walkways, paths he'd taken hundreds of time but never like this. Instead of confidently walking on the pristine walkways, he was sneaking around them, doing his best to avoid the lights and it was an eerie sensation. It was not like he didn't know how to sneak around. He'd become a veritable expert during his days as a bot-fighter. One didn't survive on the streets very long without acquiring the skill. It was just that he'd never found the need to sneak around _here_ making a place that he knew as well as the back of his hand suddenly appear to be foreign and strange.

The wind rustled the leaves of the trees, lights flickered in the gloom and the occasional sound of a car driving by on the highway in the distance only served to add to the atmosphere playing natural accompaniment to Hiro's soft footsteps on the grass. One, two, three… careful Hiro, there are a couple of rose bushes in that cor… "Ow." …ner. The whisper escaped despite his best efforts to contain it. Why did rose bushes have to be so damned prickly? Hiro glared at the offending bush in question, sucking the back of his right hand to stem the blood flow before resuming his progress. He only had a few more steps to go to reach his destination.

A few steps later he got up onto tiptoe and peered in through a large round panel of cool glass. As expected, the interior was dark and abandoned. So far, so good. Dropping back down he began to search his pockets, removing a few small items before slotting them together to create a device he'd created back when he was still in high school. Lifting the device he pressed it to the glass and lined it up with the metal on the other side before flicking the switch turning the electromagnet on. The magnetic waves activated and connected with the metal bar on the other side. Grinning in satisfaction Hiro moved the device across the glass, effectively moving the metal piece on the other side into the open position.

Bingo.

This was far too easy.

Mission accomplished, he turned his electromagnet off and slipped it back into the pocket of his hoodie. He then turned his attention back to the glass, pressing it gently in order to slide the curved bottom arch open. This was it. The moment of no return. Reaching up he used his arms to lift himself up and over, sliding easily into the darkness within, for once in his life grateful for his small stature.

Sliding down on the other side he all but landed on his face knocking his chin on the ground with a soft click of teeth before catching himself and using his momentum to roll back onto his feet. Okay, that could have been a bit more graceful but he was inside and that's all that counted. Dusting imaginary dust off he took a moment to compose himself, steeling himself for the confrontation that lay ahead before taking a deep breath. He held it. One, two, three, four, okay, now. He exhaled softly whispering one word. "Ow."

The soft sound of vinyl inflating filled the air in reaction to his prompt, the sound strangely both familiar and foreign. A pang coursed through his heart suddenly bringing home just how much he missed hearing it and he had to take another deep breath in order to steady himself. He began to speak just as the inflation was coming to an end. "Hey, Baymax, I know you don't know who I am yet but…"

"Hello, Hiro." Baymax's simple greeting threw Hiro's pre-planned greeting straight out the window causing his jaw to drop in shock instead. Did he hear wrong or had Baymax just greeted him by name.

"I… how… what…" Hiro was at a complete loss for words.

"I've been waiting for you." Baymax informed him, the sound of vinyl rubbing against itself filling the air, announcing Baymax's approach.

"I… how… what…" Hiro repeated, still trying to comprehend what was going on.

Baymax stopped before him, blinking down at him for a moment. "I detect abrasions on your right hand and your chin." He announced. "Shall I apply some Bacitracin?"

Hiro swallowed, trying to breath past the large lump in his throat, fighting back tears and relief and confusion. Baymax knew him. Baymax remembered him and even though the concept made no sense it meant the world to him. He reached up to wipe a stray tear away, using the right sleeve of his hoodie. "You… You remember. How? Why? I…" He whispered, giving voice to the confusion and relief that coursed through him. "What is the last thing you remember?"

"From which timeline?" Baymax asked.

The question momentarily threw Hiro. Baymax was aware of multiple timelines which meant all of this was real. It wasn't some delusion created by Hiro's mind in reaction to some unknown traumatic event. It was real and this time… this time Hiro wasn't alone. "How many timelines do you remember?"

"We appear to be reprocessing this current timeline for the third time." Baymax announced, confirming Hiro's suspicion. "Why did you not come fetch me in the second run?"

Hiro blinked, staring at Baymax all while processing this new turn of events along with all of its implications. Baymax was aware of every run which meant… "You recognized me when Tadashi introduced me to you again? But you told me you did not have any data detailing any previous meetings! Why would you tell me that if you remembered me?" Hiro didn't manage to keep the hurt out of his tone. Baymax had been his one constant since Tadashi's death. Always there to say the right thing and offer the support Hiro needed and to find out that Baymax had willingly denied knowing him felt like a betrayal.

"Tadashi would have doubted my coding had I indicated that I already knew you prior to him introducing us to one another. I would have been unable to provide a satisfactory response had he asked how we met. Seeing as he appears to be unaware of the fact that we are in fact repeating this timeline, his doubt may have led him to wipe my current installation in order to replace it with the master copy. This would have negated everything I had learnt since activating and resulted in the loss off all data pertaining to you. I did not wish for that to happen."

And there it was. Baymax's special ability to say exactly the right thing. Hiro sniffed and wiped a few more stray tears away speaking through the tick lump in his throat that simply refused to dissipate. "You have video… sniff… of us together… sniff, sniff… you could have shown him that."

"That course of action is not recommended. The personality analysis I have performed on Tadashi indicates that it would more likely cause Tadashi to doubt not only my coding but also his own sanity than convince him time travel was actually possible with the technology that is currently available." Baymax pointed out lifting a finger into the air in order to illustrate the point he was making. "Either that or potentially lead him to suspect you of pulling a rather cruel prank on him. Neither outcome is desired or beneficial."

Great. Baymax was smarter than him. So much for being the supposed genius everyone claimed he was. "You have a point." Hiro conceded, thinking back to all the mistakes he'd made the previous time he'd found himself back in the past. "Speaking of… has your data analysis perhaps come up with any theories as to why we traveled back in time when there is no technology that could make it possible?"

Baymax blinked at him, silently processing his question before offering an explanation. "This current phenomenon is most likely a by-product of our trip into the portal in order to save Abigail Callaghan."

Hiro blinked, momentarily shocked before repeating his earlier question. "Baymax, what is the last thing you remember? From our original timeline? The first one?"

"The last remaining data set that I have from the original timeline is the data that details our trip into the portal to save Abigail Callaghan. I saved your from being hit with debris and the impact damaged my rocket thrusters. In order to save you I activated the rocket fist and propelled both you and Abigail out of the portal."

Which explained Baymax's theory that the portal was the reason they found themselves back here. Now that Hiro really thought about it, it made a strange kind of sense. Mind boggling though it was. The portal appeared to have created a copy of Baymax's consciousness when he was lost within it, downloading it into a past version of the healthcare companion. That would explain how Baymax had gotten here. Hiro's consciousness, being more natural than artificial in its origin had probably followed similar but marginally different logic, triggering the same shift into the past but only after his death, when his awareness was free to leave his body. It was, after all, not that simple to copy a living creature's awareness as it was a machines.

"I think I get it." Hiro agreed with a frown, his brain starting to hurt from all the connections he was trying to make. Even though Baymax's theory made sense, something about it didn't feel quite right or complete and the niggling sensation that he was missing something simply refused to go away. But that, unfortunately, would have to be a problem for another day. He'd wasted enough time talking to Baymax in Tadashi's lab. His mission was still only half accomplished and the longer he delayed, the higher the risk of discovery. "But we don't have time to solve this right now." Hiro rushed around Baymax and began to push him back towards the window. "We've got to go. Hurry, before someone catches us."

Baymax blinked at him before silently complying and heading towards the window at his usual rather laid back sedate pace. Some things never changed. The moment they arrived Hiro proceeded to attempt to push Baymax through the narrow space, his efforts all thwarted by Baymax's rather large and wonderfully huggable design. Why did Tadashi have to have such an obsession with making things _cute_ rather and entirely functional? Hiro sighed and stepped back to rub his forehead in frustration, instinctively using a gesture that was more similar to Tadashi than he realized. "Baymax, you need to deflate so we can get you through the window."

"That does appear to be the most logic approach to the problem." Baymax agreed, obeying Hiro's implied request with the soft hiss of air deflating. The moment he was small enough to slip through the window he stopped the deflation process and leaned forward. Hiro gave him another push, shoving him out before grabbing his case and tossing it out behind him. Mission accomplished Hiro quickly followed, landing as gracefully on the way out as he had on the way in. Okay, marginally less gracefully seeing as he didn't have space to turn his chin impact into a graceful roll. "You have fallen." Baymax informed him, helpfully.

"You think?" Hiro gave him a look, picking himself up of the ground with a soft groan. Why did ground have to be so damned hard?

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate you…"

"Not now, Baymax." Hiro turned away from Baymax, getting up on tiptoe once more reaching in to close the window. He then pulled out his electromagnet once more and proceeded to re-lock it in an attempt to hide his point of entry. The latch closed with a soft click.

"Come on Baymax. Let's go." Hiro picked up Baymax's case and swung it onto his back using the handles installed for just that purpose before slipping back into the surrounding darkness, a white ghostly shadow waddling gracefully behind.

Viola!

Hiro had just managed to do what so many criminals before him has aspired to do. He'd committed the perfect crime. He'd stolen Baymax without leaving a trace and the rest as they said, was history. He was going to be a legend! Assuming Tadashi didn't find out he's the one that actually stole Baymax and _kill_ him first.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So did I manage to surprise everyone again? I bet no one saw this coming XD XD XD. Hiro knows his brother very well, Tadashi is so going to KILL him if he finds out!


	18. Trying to Feel Invincible

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure I like this chapter but I'm going to post it anyway… Sigh T_T

**Trying to Feel Invincible**

Returning home the previous night or more specifically early the next morning, had been an interesting experience to say the least. Even though everyone had been asleep when he left and were still asleep when he returned, returning with Baymax in tow brought with it a whole new set of problems. Problems that Hiro hadn't remotely bothered to think about when he'd first come up with his fantastic plan to steal Baymax. By far the largest of these was the question of where he would be keeping the healthcare companion. His past, or if one was being entirely technical first set of future experiences were, woefully inadequate reference material. He couldn't exactly keep Baymax in his bedroom, stored at the bottom of Tadashi's bed, after all. Tadashi would spot that in an instant and all Hiro's efforts would be for naught.

So it was that he'd found himself sneaking into the garage at half past three in the morning, working really hard not to make any suspicious noises. Fortunately for him, his efforts paid off and he was able to slip both himself and Baymax into the space without waking anyone in the house. If that didn't deserve at least fifty victory points, Hiro didn't know what did. Tadashi seemed to have an amazing sixth sense when it came to Hiro sneaking out in the middle of the night and had a tendency to be already awake and ready to launch into full on lecture mode the moment Hiro returned.

Once inside he had deactivated Baymax and stowed him behind a pile of random robotics parts. Tadashi was unlikely to look there. Even though the garage had once belonged to both of them, it had become Hiro's work space when Tadashi had moved his projects to his SFIT lab. As great as his temporary storage place was, he knew it was not ideal and not without risk but he didn't have all that many options at his disposal and would have to make it work.

Satisfied that things would be alright for the time being he had then slipped back upstairs and into bed pretending to be fast asleep when Tadashi got up two hours later and prepared to go to school. The moment Tadashi was safely gone, he'd leaped out of bed and rushed back down into the garage, completely forgoing general hygiene and food in favor of locking himself away to work. The moment the space was secure he re-activated Baymax and threw himself avidly into work, completely losing track of time as he lost himself in all the details of what he had to accomplish.

Hiro was sitting at his desk, feet crossed on the chair, leaning forward to inspect his latest modification to his design when a knock on the door, that connected the garage to the house, pulled him abruptly from his thoughts. He shot up and turned to stare at Baymax, eyes wide, looking very much like a deer caught in headlights.

Uh oh…

The silence that followed his movement almost made him doubt what he had heard.

The knock came again. "Hiro? Are you in there?" The door handle began to turn.

Oh no! Someone was at the door. Or more specifically _Tadashi_ was at the door and he was about to walk in on Hiro and _Baymax._ Leaping out of the chair Hiro rushed over towards Baymax's side and began to push him towards the corner where his battery charger was stored. "My scanner detects that Tadashi is at the door." Baymax said in a low tone, the statement meant to be helpful. Baymax still had not learnt that pointing out obvious facts was _not_ helpful. The fact that he had chosen to whisper the statement, at least, _was_ something to be grateful for. Baymax appeared to remember the value of subterfuge if nothing else. Now all they needed to do was get through the immediate danger.

"I know. You need to hide." Hiro whispered in return pushing harder against the vinyl when Baymax would not move any faster than his usual sedate pace. What on earth had possessed Tadashi to make Baymax so _slow_?!

The door rattled but did not immediately open reminding Hiro that he hadn't been a complete idiot. He'd locked it. Great! That should buy him some time. "Come on, come on." He continued on a whisper still pushing the cuddly healthcare companion. "Hurry."

"I am not fast." Baymax replied, repeating a statement he had made in a similar situation shortly after meeting Hiro for the first time.

The door rattled again only this time it was accompanied by the scrape of metal on metal. Damn it! Hiro had completely forgotten Tadashi had a KEY!

"No kidding." Hiro replied, finally managing to shove Baymax into the corner and onto his docking station. The soft hiss of air escaping vinyl filled the garage, the sound pulling a wince of pain from Hiro as he bounced up and down on his feet anxiously staring between the door and Baymax hoping against hope that he was not about to be caught with his hands in the figurative cookie jar. "Come on, come on, come on." He whispered under his breath his mind painting pictures of all the bad ways this could end.

_Hiss, rattle rattle, whoosh._

Tadashi was about to walk into the garage and if he managed to do it before Baymax managed to deflate he would see the evidence of Hiro's crime for himself. Hiro was sooo dead.

_Rattle, scrape._

Worse still, Hiro could already be caught. The rather distinctive sound of Baymax deflating was echoing through the limited space seeming to reverberate through Hiro's mind so loudly that he couldn't possible imagine Tadashi missing it. He was so very, _very_ dead…

_Hiss, whoosh, rattle, whoosh, rattle, rattle, click._

Silence.

Baymax finished deflating just as the door to the garage began to open. A flicker of relief coursed through Hiro only to be quickly replaced by the realization that the bright red of Baymax's docking station was clearly visible among the rubble of the other parts. Snatching off his beloved blue hoodie Hiro threw it over the docking station and turned to face the door, just as Tadashi stepped into the garage with a frown on his face.

"Hiro?" Tadashi closed the door behind him before heading over towards Hiro, a flicker of concern reflected in his eyes. "Is everything okay?"

"Y… yeah. Why wouldn't it be?" Hiro asked, taking a step sideways to keep himself between Tadashi and the docking station he was fighting to hide. He plastered an overly excited expression on his face, the smile so fake there was no way Tadashi would accept it at face; pun totally intended; value. Only… he did.

"Yeah, why wouldn't you be?" Tadashi echoed sounding almost apathetic as he walked right past Hiro. He headed towards Hiro's desk and straddled Hiro's chair the wrong way around, swiveling around to face his little brother. That is the moment when it hit Hiro… Tadashi was a mess. His usually neat hair was sticking up as if he'd been running nervous hands through it, his cardigan was not quite straight, his entire body was slouched over in a defeated, exhausted slump and his face wore a haggard and stressed expression Hiro could not recall ever seeing upon it.

Taking a few cautious steps forward, he approached his brother speaking past the thick lump suddenly obstructing his throat. "Are _you_ okay?" He shouldn't be asking that question. He _really_ shouldn't be asking that question because he knew the answer. Tadashi was very clearly _not_ okay and Hiro was the one to blame for it.

Tadashi sighed, reaching out to rub a hand over his face. "No." Tadashi shook his head and dropped his hand onto the back of the chair. "I'm not okay. Someone stole my final year project and I have to rebuild it from scratch. I've just spent all day dealing with my professors, security and the police. I'm sorry Hiro, but I won't have as much time to help you with your showcase project as I had hoped."

_Way to go Tadashi. Cut me right through the heart why don't you?_

Tadashi's words, combined with the guilty expression on his face struck Hiro right where it hurt. The fact that his brother was more worried about Hiro's project and his inability to help him than the fact that his own project had to be redone only served to increase the levels of guilt that already had Hiro firmly in their grip.

"Though why anyone would want to steal him, I'll never know." Tadashi continued swiveling Hiro's chair around in a circle as he spoke, his words more directed at thinking aloud than at Hiro. "It doesn't make sense. They would have nothing to gain from it. I have all the required patents, design schematics and backup code to prove I'm the one that created him so it's not like they will be able to use him without someone finding out the design was stolen from me. Baymax is, after all, very unique." The last statement held a rather discernible thread of pride. Tadashi had created something amazing and he knew it. What he didn't know was that _Hiro_ was the one that had stolen it from him.

What Tadashi didn't know couldn't hurt Hiro…

"I'm sorry." Hiro said. The words came across as sympathy towards Tadashi's plight but their meaning was so much deeper than Tadashi would ever realize. Hiro _was_ sorry. He was sorry Tadashi had died twice as a result of something _Hiro_ had invented. He was sorry for the undue stress his theft of Baymax in the current timeline was causing and he was sorry that he wasn't able to tell Tadashi the truth but he _wasn't_ sorry that he had taken Baymax.

"It's not your fault." Tadashi absently brushed Hiro's apology aside.

_Yes it is._

"I probably should have secured him better."

_I would have gotten him no matter how well you secured him. I know the layout of that lab better than almost anyone._

"I didn't even manage to show him to you."

_Yes you did._

"You would have loved him."

_I do. More than you can ever know. Baymax is AMAZING._

"I was planning to show him to you today. Ironic right? That he gets stolen on the very day I plan to introduce you to him?"

_No. Not ironic. Well planned and entirely intentional. I needed to get to him before you introduce him to me so you have no reason to believe his theft could be connected to me._

"I wanted you to like him." Tadashi stopped swiveling the chair, looking up to face Hiro head on. "I wanted to give you something to aim for. To prove that your big head could be used to help people instead of half concocted plans to get into trouble all the time but most of all I wanted you to be proud of something I had managed to create and now… now I have to start all over again."

And with that statement Tadashi revealed entirely new side of his character. It seemed that Tadashi wanted Hiro's approval as much as Hiro wanted Tadashi's and Hiro wasn't entirely sure how he felt about that. It went against the natural order of things. Tadashi was not supposed to be insecure. He was, after all the older brother, a hero, brave, strong, always in control and invincible. He was supposed to be untouchable. Insecurity was Hiro's job. "Your invention…" Hiro paused to take a breath, carefully considering his phrasing before continuing. "I'm sure your invention is amazing, judging by _normal_ standards of course and if it will make you feel better I'll pretend to be impressed when you finally get the chance to show it to me."

Hiro's cocky reply did exactly what it was meant to do. It got under Tadashi's skin and pulled an exclamation from him lips. "Hey, Bonehead!" Tadashi flicked Hiro on the forehead. "Are you trying to imply you could do better? Don't underestimate my project before you've even had a chance to see it!" Tadashi reached out, grabbed Hiro's wrist and pulled him closer. "Damn right, it's amazing! Not just by _normal_ standards! And you won't have to pretend to be impressed when you see it because you _will_ be impressed! I'm going to rebuild it and show you that you still have a long ways to go before you catch up to me! But enough about me. Let's see what great contribution to humanity you're working on." Tadashi set the chair into motion once more turning towards Hiro's PC, Hiro's right wrist still in his grasp.

Oh no!

His project! In his rush to hide Baymax, Hiro had completely forgotten to close the design files for the project he was currently working on. Which meant that the schematics he had been in the process of modifying were still open, displayed on his screen for everyone to see.

"Is that some kind of super hero suit?" Tadashi asked in disbelief, his own problems momentarily forgotten in the face of his incredulity.


	19. The Art of Artifice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be honest, the last chapter took an unexpected turn for me. I didn't intend for Tadashi to see the super hero suit design. It just kind of happened so even I didn't know how Hiro was going to explain it away before I wrote this chapter today.

**The Art of Artifice**

Is that some kind of super hero suit?

The question echoed through Hiro's mind swirling around with the panic that was fueling his rapid thoughts. Tadashi saw it! Tadashi just spotted his design for the super hero suit he was in the process of creating. Fortunately it was the design for Hiro's suit and not the one that belonged to Baymax. _That_ would have been ten times worse but still. Tadashi was staring at the design for a super hero suit and Hiro didn't have a believable story that he could use to explain it away. "It's not… uh… "Hiro clenched his fists fighting the urge to lean forward and close the design program. He wanted to hide it, conceal the details of it from Tadashi's prying eyes but that would only serve to make Tadashi even more suspicious than he already was. "It's not what you think."

Tadashi quirked a questioning eyebrow at him. "Oh? And what do I think?" That question only made things worse, adding even more chaos to the already dangerous situation Hiro was desperately trying to think his way out of. Why? Why did Tadashi have to be so damned _smart_?

"I'm just… uh… I'm just playing around." Hiro said in a rush, glancing at the screen, seeking inspiration. The green schematics displayed an all too familiar design. One he was intimately acquainted with. A design that looked like it came straight out of a comic book. Only it didn't. It was real. It was functional and he had done a lot of good in it.

Wait!

That was it!

A perfect explanation had just fallen into his lap! He glanced back at Tadashi, a cocky grin slipping onto his lips. "There's a comic book convention coming to San Fransokyo and I want to attend. I figured I'd dress the part in order to blend in with the comic geeks. As they say, when in Rome…" He let the rest of the sentence trail off, knowing full well Tadashi was more than smart enough to complete it for himself.

Tadashi frowned, glancing at the suit before looking back at Hiro, skepticism rife upon his features. "Since when have you been interested in comics? You've always been a man of science, more interested in theories you can prove and technology that you can create yourself than wild stories of super powers and heroes. You didn't even want me to read children's books to you when you were a toddler and now you expect me to believe you've suddenly developed an interest in something as crazy as comic books?"

"Comic books are not as crazy as you think." Hiro retorted, echoes of similar protests made by Fred running through his mind, almost creating a strange sense of déjà vu. "There is more science in them than people realize. Just because it was dreamed up as a fantasy doesn't mean sound science can't make it a reality!" He was _so_ lucky Fred wasn't around to hear him say that! Hiro had quickly learned to curb Fred's wild requests for inventions by telling him they were 'Not Science'. It allowed him to minimize the chaos of running a team of super heroes which was by its very nature prone to unpredictability and mayhem. If Fred heard him admit that some of the things in those comic books, he constantly flaunted, might actually be science, he would never let Hiro hear the end of it.

Tadashi groaned, releasing Hiro's wrist to face palm himself. "If I didn't know better I'd ask you if you have been talking to Fred."

_Yeah, if you didn't know better. Let's go with that!_

Hiro shifted his weight and bit his lip to keep himself from blurting out something he really shouldn't say. _Mind to mouth filter. Remember the mind to mouth filter._ There was no need to tell Tadashi that he _had_ in fact been talking to Fred. A LOT. For over two and a half years in fact! Technically, in this lifetime that was no longer true.

"After all, you haven't even met Fred yet." Tadashi continued, once again speaking to himself before stumbling upon yet _another_ dangerous question. "Have you?"

Um…

Time to put his best game face on.

"Fred?" Hiro put on his best confused face, lifting a finger thoughtfully to his lip. "Isn't he one of those nerd friends you keep talking about? I don't believe we've met yet." Which though a lie, was _technically_ true.

"Well you're certainly starting to sound like him." Tadashi commented turning to inspect Hiro's design once more. He lifted his fingers and zoomed in closer, rotating the design around as he took in the various details.

_Don't question it. Please don't question its accuracy. Please oh please oh please don't notice that its actually functional._

"It's very detailed for something you're only planning to wear to a comic book convention." Tadashi commented with a frown, zooming in closer to some of the functional parts. "Electro-magnets? What do you need electro-magnets for? Are you planning on climbing some steel piping or something?"

Go figure. Of course his ridiculous request would go unanswered. Tadashi was simply too smart to miss something that obvious. Why did he have to win the sibling jackpot and get a sibling that actually understood his projects?

Hiro released an apprehensive laugh, reaching up to nervously tug at a few longer strands of hair all while meticulously inspecting the ceiling. And people say men can't multi-task. Little do they know. Multi-tasking for the win! "Um… yeah… I figured I'd add a few cool features to jazz my costume up a little, you know, wow the other conference goers."

Tadashi raised an eyebrow, the skepticism on his face only growing with each response Hiro gave him. Why? Why could Tadashi not take anything at face value? "You're hiding something from me." Tadashi declared, the words a statement of certainty and not a question. "You're not building this for a comic book convention. You're building this to get yourself into trouble. What are you planning to use it for? More bot fights? Is it supposed to protect you from getting hurt by the people you manage to con out of their money while providing you with the extra edge you need to get away by allowing you to scale walls?"

Wow! Just wow! Not only was Tadashi every bit as perceptive as he had always been when it came to figuring out when Hiro was keeping secrets from him, he'd also managed to think of something Hiro himself had missed. Hiro had honestly never considered that his super hero suit could be used in such a manner but now that Tadashi pointed that out… "That's a great idea!" He exclaimed, leaning closer to look at the suit. "Why didn't I think of that? The carbon fibre is sure to keep any punches from hurting, that is after all what it is designed to do and the electromagnets could help me scale fire escapes much quicker than anyone else. The bot fighters will never be able to keep up with me!"

That's not to say Hiro had not used those very features before. He'd simply never used them against _bot fighters._ His bot fighting career had, after all, been dead and buried by the time he made the suit. The fact that he'd created it to honor Tadashi and keep his memory alive only served to ensure that Hiro never even considered using it to do anything quite that illegal or shady. And in the interest of full honesty, he wasn't about to start now. Tadashi, however, didn't need to know that.

Tadashi groaned. "Don't even think about it, Hiro." He growled, frustration flickering across his features. "It's wrong and you know it."

"But you're always saying I should stop bot fighting because you can't always be around to pull me out of danger and I might get hurt." Hiro pointed out, milking the distraction for all it was worth. "This would take care of that." He pointed at the schematics.

"Bot-fighting is not just dangerous it's also illegal." Tadashi argued.

"We've been over this before. Bot fighting is not illegal." Hiro retorted. "Betting on bot fights, however, now that's illegal!"

Tadashi gave him a look. "You know you have no right to argue that distinction when I happen to know for a fact that you have been betting on bot fights." He pointed out. "And now you want to make even more of a target of yourself by wearing something like that to them?" Tadashi pointed at the screen.

"Breathe." Hiro raised his arms in an attempt to calm his over protective brother. The joke had gone a little too far. "My bot fighting career is over. I'm not planning on wearing that to bot fights. I'm not _that_ stupid. My youthful appearance and innocence has always worked in my favor, why would I compromise that by covering it up?"

Tadashi opened his mouth to argue only to close it again when he couldn't find fault Hiro's logic. "Your bot fighting career is over? So you're really serious about not bot fighting anymore?"

Hiro nodded, choosing not to point out that they had already had this conversation when he'd informed Tadashi that he was planning on applying to SFIT.

"You're not planning on sneaking out to more bot fights while I'm busy redoing my project?" Another stab of guilt coursed through Hiro at those words. Tadashi was again placing Hiro's well being before his own, more worried about what Hiro might get up to during the time he needed to spend rebuilding Baymax than the fact that he'd just lost months if not years of hard work and research.

"No, I'm not. Cross my heart and hope to die." Hiro promised, lowering his arms to draw a cross over his chest.

Tadashi remained silent, really looking at Hiro for a long moment before speaking once more. "So this really is for a comic book convention then?"

"Y…yeah." Hiro crossed the fingers of one hand behind his back, hoping the interrogation would end soon. He wasn't sure how much longer he could lie.

Only Tadashi was not quite yet convinced. "Name five comic book characters then."

"Male or Female." Hiro asked, mentally going through all the random conversations he'd had with Fred over the years.

"Let's make it easy. Three male and two female." Tadashi said, glancing at the PC once more. "Super heroes as that appears to be your preferred interest."

Okay, that narrowed the list down a little. Now to prove to Tadashi that he really knew what he was talking about. "DC or Marvel?"

Tadashi blinked in surprise. He'd clearly not expected that response. He gave the question careful consideration before responding, the doubt on his face already beginning to fade. "Marvel."

"Oh, that's easy." Hiro scoffed haughtily, mentally going through the catalog of comic book characters he'd created simply to keep up with Fred's often random and obscure references during their everyday conversations. "Iron Man, because he's a scientific genius just like me. Thor, because he is not only a comic book Hero but also an actual Norse mythological figure. Also I could probably make a hammer that shoots lightning so that makes him a little more believable in my books. That's two, oh and Star-Lord, because he relies on his wits and his intellect. That's guys done, now for girls, lets see… um…"

Oh no! He couldn't think of any female super heroes? Did that make him a sexist? No, he knew of at least two female super heroes. They were really scary when they wanted to be and he certainly didn't want to end up on their wrong side but he couldn't exactly name Gogo and Honey Lemon! Why were they the only ones he could think of?! Damn it! He really should have paid more attention to Fred's ramblings instead of simply taking note of the handful of male heroes he actually remembered simply because they had reminded him a bit of himself. Except for Thor that is. That was all about the lightning. Shooting lightning out of a hammer was just _that_ AWESOME!

"Okay, I'm convinced. You can stop wracking your brain for the names of female super heroes." Tadashi shook his head with a grin, flicking Hiro on the forehead. "Women can make awesome super heroes too you know." He reprimanded Hiro lightly. "I know a lot of comic books tend to focus on guys but there are some awesome female characters in those as well. Even Iron Man knows a few really strong female super heroes. I should introduce you to Fred so he can broaden your horizons in that regard but if you start asking me to turn you into a fire breathing lizard I'm cutting you off. Do you hear me?"

Hiro heaved a silent sigh of relief subconsciously releasing another nervous laugh. Another obstacle successfully defeated! "Yeah, okay. No fire breathing lizards." He easily agreed to Tadashi's terms. After all, he wasn't the fire breathing lizard in the group. Fred was.

"Great." Tadashi reached over to ruffle Hiro's hair. "Now that I know your dark secret I'll ask Fred if he'll borrow you some of his comic books. They might even keep you out of trouble while I'm busy redoing my project."

Hiro silently groaned. Great. Just great. He may have managed to convince Tadashi that he was designing a suit because he was a comic book geek but now he was getting homework! In order to keep up the ruse, he'd have to actually _read_ some of the comic books Tadashi brought back.

It was not like he didn't already have enough on his plate as it was. And so the vicious cycle continued…

Why couldn't life just be _easy_ for a change _?_


	20. Fred's Angels

**Fred's Angels**

CAUTION

QUARANTINE AREA

_'Quarantine.' Enforced isolation to prevent contamination that could lead to disease, or, in some cases, death._

Hiro gently landed on his feet, the all too familiar yellow sign bringing to the fore memories of everything that had transpired the last time he had set foot on this island. Unfortunately, most of the memories were not good ones. It reminded him of Abigail, Callaghan, Tadashi, his micro-bots, a failed mission plan and a thirst for revenge. This place had been a turning point for him and could very easily have turned him into someone Tadashi would have been very disappointed in. He'd been so angry, so filled with rage and hate that he'd almost killed a man. Even worse, he'd attempted to use Tadashi's invention to do it.

If he had come alone with only Baymax in tow, like now, he may very well have succeeded.

That moment of weakness was the source of his greatest shame. The fact that he had been willing to discard everything Tadashi had taught him about the value of human life simply to get revenge on the man that had unjustly stolen Tadashi's from him was something Hiro had tried really hard to forget. It was a stark reminder of his greatest character flaw and one he didn't want to consider too deeply lest it lead him back down the dark path he had narrowly managed to avoid. He was not Tadashi. He would never even measure up to him and that knowledge hurt.

Shaking off his moment of introspection, Hiro adjusted the backpack on his shoulders and took a step towards the abandoned research facility. "Let's go, Baymax." He said softly.

Baymax waddled after him, carrying a large metal box. "It is not advisable to turn an area that has been quarantined into Laboratory." Baymax informed him, his bright red suit hidden among the evening shadows. "It is also not safe for you to be out alone. You might suffer some kind of injury."

"I'm not alone." Hiro knelt down at the entrance to the facility and extracted a laser cutter from his backpack. Turning it on, he aimed it at the door seams, cutting carefully through the locks located therein instead of creating a large hole in the middle as Wasabi had when he'd performed this task. Big Hero 6 had learnt a lot in the two years they had been operating and even though the team was no longer with him, the lessons they had all learn still remained. "I have you."

"I am programmed with over 10 000 medical procedures." Baymax declared.

Hiro smiled, the declaration stirring a mixed pot of guilt and pride within him. "That you are, bud, that you are. Tadashi really did an amazing job when he created you." He agreed, patting Baymax on the shoulder before pushing open the door he'd just cut open with a loud screech. He winced, looking around nervously when the sound triggered a flutter of movement on his right. A familiar pigeon flew out of one of the trees cooing at him in irritation before settling on the fence to watch him. "Well, at least we didn't try to kill it this time." He commented wryly, sheepishly meeting Baymax's gaze for a moment before stepping into the corridor before him.

"We did not succeed last time." Baymax waddled after him.

"Not for lack of trying, buddy, not for lack of trying." Hiro responded wryly before falling silent making his way carefully through the familiar darkness. Even though he was now entering the facility after dark, the interior was pretty much the same as it has been last time, the metal walls of the facility having effectively blocked any sunlight from filtering in. The corridor was long and narrow, illuminated be a narrow string of emergency fluorescent lights, the metal grid beneath his feet echoing each step they took eerily through their surroundings. Okay, so it wasn't exactly the same. Hiro didn't recall this place being quite _this_ spooky last time.

"Six intrepid friends led by Fred, their leader, Fred." Hiro began to sing softly under his breath, his desire to break the eerie silence bringing forth memories of a song that had accomplished exactly that two and a half years ago. Fred's ridiculous song may have annoyed Wasabi back then but it had served a larger purpose than anyone realized, normalizing a situation that was clearly far from normal. "Fred's angels. Hmm, hmm, hmm. Fred's angels. Hmm, hmm, hmm. Harnessing the power of the sun with the ancient amulet they found in the attic. Hmm, hmm, hmm. The amulet is green. Hmm, hmm, hmm. It's probably an emerald…"

"That is the song Fred sang when we first entered this facility." Baymax said just as Hiro ran out of lyrics. That was, after all, the point at which Wasabi had cut Fred off. They had found the laboratory that housed Project Silent Sparrow soon afterwards.

"Yeah." Hiro agreed. "It is. This place reminds me of them." There was a thread of sorrow and regret in his voice.

"Your neurotransmitter levels have dropped." Baymax said, titling his head to this side. "This indicates that you are depressed. You miss them, don't you?"

Hiro blinked, surprised by both sharp pang in his chest and the stray tears that Baymax's words brought to his eyes. Reaching up he hastily wiped them away before they had a chance to fall. "Yeah, Buddy, I do." He admitted.

"Why did we come here alone, then?" Baymax asked. "Could we not have brought the rest of the team with us?"

"Because they don't know us anymore." Hiro said, fighting to hide the pain that statement caused him. "Or more specifically they don't know me. They haven't met me yet."

Baymax did not respond, silently processing Hiro's statement as they finally approached the entrance to the laboratory Honey Lemon had discovered. Sliding open the door he stepped into the lightly illuminated space, slivers of moonlight filtering in through a hole in the roof to reflect off of the cool metal of two round rings. Oh yeah, that's right… Callaghan hadn't started dismantling the remaining functional one yet. That's a relief. That meant Hiro still had something to work with. "Right." Hiro squared his shoulders and clapped his hands in attempt to shake off the loneliness that had him in its grip. "That's enough moping." He didn't have time to dwell on his lack of friends, not when he still had a life to save. Besides, he wasn't completely alone. He had Baymax at his side. "Time to get to work." That said he turned and marched straight into the facility's control center to set up what would soon become his base camp.

Hiro was arms deep in the guts of one of the control stations, busy rewiring the faulty console when Baymax spoke again. "You could have re-introduced yourself to them." Baymax held out the screwdriver Hiro had requested mere moments before.

Hiro blinked, peering out from beneath the console, his mind momentarily trying to make sense of Baymax's statement. Oh, Baymax was still talking about the rest of the team. "That wouldn't have accomplished anything." Hiro crawled out from beneath the console, dropping the pliers he had been working with to the ground. "They still wouldn't remember me or any of the time we have spent together."

"Contact with friends and loved ones facilitates good mental and emotional health." Baymax said, blinking down at Hiro.

"I know. Only they are no longer my friends." Hiro pointed out, grief coursing through him. It hurt, it hurt almost as much as it had when Tadashi had died and he couldn't quite understand why. The gang was, after all, still very much alive and well. Why did it feel like the lack of their presence had left a gaping bleeding hole in his heart?

"They were your friends once. They can be your friends again." Baymax pointed out logically.

"They are Tadashi's friends." Hiro said, getting up, dusting his hands off. He reached up and began to unclip the various clasps that held his super hero suit together, dropping the shielding armor to the floor to reveal casual clothes underneath. "The only reason they ever became mine in the first place is because he died and now that he's not dead…" Hiro pulled off his helmet and looked up at Baymax, the expression in his eyes exposed and vulnerable.

"I do not believe they befriended you simply because your brother died." Baymax said. "If that were the case they would have had no reason to stay with you as long as they did. They expressed great concern for your well being and fought by your side when you decided you wished to hunt down the man that stole your micro-bots."

"They stayed with me because we were fighting for Tadashi. What started off as a mission to capture his killer turned into something we did to honor his memory and then…" Hiro fell silent, completely at a loss for words. He _really did_ miss them. He missed Wasabi's OCD, Gogo's straight remarks, Honey Lemon's soft gentle words and Fred's wild and impossible theories. He missed everything about them but most of all he missed being part of the group, having people care about him and not just because they had to due to being related to him. "You know what? It doesn't matter. That was another lifetime and it's not something I can just get back that easily. It doesn't change anything. In this lifetime we haven't even met." Hiro picked up a hammer, a large hydraulic screwdriver and a crowbar walking out of the control room and straight towards one of the large portal rings, leaving Baymax behind in a bid to create some space between the uncomfortable conversation he'd just been engaged in and the turmoil it had awoken within him.

Reaching the edge of the platform the control station was located on, he sighed in defeat and dropped his tools to the ground. The only way to reach the platform the two rings were resting on was to fly across the empty space that existed between that platform and the one he was currently on. Either that or scale up and down the various supports that held the two platforms up and he'd just taken off his suit because he felt it restricted his range of movement too much to allow him to work on the finer components that made up various machinery still in the facility.

Fortunately for him, he didn't wait very long for an answer to his dilemma to present itself. Baymax waddled right after him, ever concerned about both his mental and physical well being. "I apologize if I have said something that has caused you distress." Baymax announced reaching Hiro's side and standing beside him, joining him in his contemplation of the distant rings.

Hiro sighed, before bending down to pick up his recently discarded tools. "That's alright, Buddy." He said softly, hiding behind his bangs for a moment before raising his head to face Baymax once more. "It's not really your fault. I'm just still struggling to adjust to all of this." He raised the crowbar and pointed it at the two portals located on the other side of the lab. "I thought this chapter of my life was over yet here I am, reliving it."

"We do appear to have found ourselves bound by a rather unique set of circumstances." Baymax conceded. "One that appears to contradict all the logical rules of existence Tadashi has coded into my data bank. I suppose it is only natural that you suffer some level of distress as a result. Until you find a way to reconnect with your friends, please know that I am able to listen if you require someone to speak to."

Hiro blinked, an undefined emotion constricting his chest. How did Baymax always manage to say the right thing in the end? It was true, he had lost a lot by travelling back in time but he hadn't lost everything. He still had Baymax and where Baymax had initially been his remaining connection to Tadashi after his brother had died, in this reality he was becoming something different altogether. He was Hiro's last remaining connection to a time only he remembered and everything that he had left behind when he'd died and found himself back in the past. "Thanks, Buddy." Hiro said, smiling up at Baymax for a moment before bending down to retrieve the rest of his tools. "Mind flying me over there?" He stood back up, pointing at the still intact portal ring.

Baymax retracted his wings and reached down to life Hiro up into his arms, cradling him like a child as he took to the air. "Why did you remove your super hero suit?" Baymax asked, landing in the other side. He made sure he had both feet firmly planted on the ground before placing Hiro down in front of him.

"The suit is clunky. It's making it difficult to work with the smaller components installed into this equipment." Hiro headed straight towards the working ring, pulled out a screwdriver and began to unscrew the screws holding it in place. He wanted to take a look inside so he could figure out how it worked. Once he had a better understanding of the mechanics that made it function, he could move onto phase B of his new plan… Fix it.

He lifted off the first panel a few minutes later. "Aaaaand I'm in! When you're good, you're good! Am I genius or what?" Hiro cried out triumphantly, reaching in to the newly exposed space. The plan was simple. Brush the cables that were obstructing his view, aside and take a closer look at the construction behind them. Only he should have known nothing was ever that simple. Eager to finally see what made the portal tick, he completely missed the danger he was literally stepping onto. Moving closer to the portal, he stepped directly onto the hydraulic screwdriver he'd brought with him. The screwdriver, unsurprising, shifted beneath his weight and caused him to lose his balance which sent him unexpectedly tumbling into the arch he had just managed to expose.

Wires, brushed across his face accompanied by the scent of rubber, grease, plastic and metal. The moonlight flickered, creating a kaleidoscope of monochrome color, air rushed past his face and something brushed across his arm and then it was over. Hiro was on his ass, inside one of the portal structure, tangled in cables, wires and circuit boards. Boy did he feel stupid. He reached up to brush the cables away only to release a sharp cry at the pain the suddenly coursed through his arm. Lowering said arm he looked down to see blood seeping out of a deep long gash that covered at least half of his forearm.

Oh no!

How on earth was he going to explain away _this_?

Note to self: Get better lights.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was supposed to be in bed early last night because I have a dance competition today but did that happen? Nooooo... Why? Because I was up late writing this. This story is taking over my life people!


	21. The Best Laid Plans

**The Best Laid Plans**

"Okay, so let's go through the plan one more time. We land about three hundred meters away from the Lucky Cat Café. We then walk the remaining distance and sneak back to the Café and into the garage. I'll then pull out the medical aid bag Tadashi has stowed away in the back of the garage and you can use its contents to patch me up. Once you're done, I'll put on my hoodie and wear it everywhere until it heals leaving Tadashi none the wiser." Hiro rambled, his words carried away by the same wind that tugged at his messy strands of hair and chilled him to the bone. He never realized just how much protection his suit offered him during flight until now. He shivered. "Easy, right? Tadashi will never know and what Tadashi doesn't know can't hurt him, right?"

Baymax didn't bother to reply, simply cradling Hiro carefully in his arms as he prepared to land preparing to execute the next phase of the plan he had come up with the moment he had detected that his primary patient was injured. Hiro was in no condition to be making logical decisions about his own health and had, after all, been rambling like that the entire flight back from Akuma Island.

Baymax's plan was simple:

Step 1: Get Hiro out of the portal component.

Hiro had fallen straight into the arched component, slipping past wires, capacitors and other parts to land in a large hollow space on the right hand side. The wires Hiro had slipped past had then become an obstruction, separating Baymax from his patient. Needing to get his patient out, Baymax had grabbed hold of the wires, and pulled on them. The action had, much to Hiro's rather vocally expressed dismay, torn them apart. The vocal cry of dismay was quickly followed by rambling that detailed potential plans to repair the newly inflicted damage to the portal. Even when injured, Hiro's mind refused to stop solving problems.

Step 2: Apply emergency care to the injury.

Unfortunately Baymax's options had been rather limited in that regard. This was their first trip to the island since restarting the new timeline and an emergency first aid kit had not been among the supplies Hiro had packed when he'd decided to turn it into a base of operations. Lacking the tools he required to patch the wound, Baymax had retrieved Hiro's hoodie and pressed it down onto the wound, ordering Hiro to hold it in place to stem some of the blood flow until the proper care could be administered. Fortunately for him, Hiro decided to play the model patient, obeying the order without protest.

Step 3: Transport his patient to a location where appropriate care may be administered. Location: Nearest Medical Center.

Having administered the best care he was able to in the given circumstances, Baymax had then scooped Hiro up into his arms and taken to the air, exiting the facility through the rather convenient hole in the roof. Adjusting his flight path, he'd then turned back towards San Fransokyo. This was the point at which Hiro's mind caught up to what Baymax was actually doing. "Wait…. Wait a minute! Where are you taking me?" Hiro demanded, plans to repair the damaged portal completely forgotten in favor of the new problem that faced him.

"To the nearest medical center." Baymax replied, scanning the skyline for the nearest facility.

"Wait! No! You can't!" Hiro protested cradling his arm to his chest. "If you take me to a hospital, they are going to have to call my legal guardian and Aunt Cass and Tadashi are going to find out that I was out. They will ground me for life and my plan to save Tadashi and Abigail will be ruined!"

Baymax processed this new information, adding it to the parameters he had already analysed when coming up with a plan of action following Hiro's injury. "You're injury requires stitching."

"I know! I know." Hiro paled even further, pressing down firmly onto his arm. "But you can do that, right? You are programmed with over 10 000 medical procedures. Surely stitching a wound closed is one of them?"

"I require the proper equipment in order to execute the medical procedures I have been programmed to handle." Baymax informed him. "One cannot perform a task without the proper tools with which to execute it."

"We have a decent emergency kit at home." Hiro said in a rush, shivering in the cold wind. "It's better equipped than most paramedic's bags. Tadashi stocked it. He's always been paranoid about this kind of stuff. I'm sure he's included needles, thread and antiseptic. Please, Baymax. We can't save Tadashi if Aunt Cass grounds me!"

Baymax remained silent for a moment, inputting all the new parameters at his disposal and recalculating his next course of action. "Very well." He relented. "We shall head to your home and the emergency medical supplies you claim are located there."

Step 3 (Revised): Transport his patient to a location where appropriate care may be administered. Location: Lucky Cat Café.

Hiro heaved a sigh of relief when Baymax relented. Then he started to ramble again, thinking aloud as he came up with a plan to keep his wound hidden from Tadashi. Unfortunately for Hiro, Baymax stopped listening, silently inputting parameters Hiro was completely oblivious to into his decision matrix.

Landing safely, Baymax carefully lowered Hiro to the ground. Hiro wobbled when his feet connected to the ground. He took a moment to regain his balance before turning in preparation for the walk towards the Lucky Cat Café only to blink in surprise at the realization that he was already there. Baymax had placed him down right in front of the garage. That was _not_ the plan! Someone could have heard them and caught them landing in the driveway! Fortunately it appeared that their arrival had gone unnoticed. The Café was still dark and landing here _had just_ saved Hiro a walk which he probably would not have made in his current condition. If he was entirely honest with himself he was actually relieved and so he chose not to reprimand Baymax for deviating from the plan he'd worked so hard to come up with on the way here. Okay, onto step 2 of Hiro's plan, open the garage and sneak in before anyone woke up.

Hiro stepped forward, a hiss escaping his lips when his knees threatened to collapse beneath him. _Don't fall. Don't fall._ Only a few steps into the garage and then he could collapse all over his chair. Okay so he _definitely_ would NOT have made the walk home. Biting his lip, he ignored his weakness and took the remaining two steps towards the garage. Baymax silently reached out and opened it, waiting for Hiro to step inside. _Just a few more steps._ His chair was just a few more steps away. Stumbling past Baymax Hiro headed towards the chair and collapsed into it with a sigh of relief. He'd made it! Now onto Step 3 of Hiro's plan. "Baymax, Tadashi keeps the medical aid kit in the back, by the left hand side wall. That used to be his work space." Hiro instructed, closing his eyes against a sudden wave of dizziness.

Hiro's statement was greeted by…

Silence.

"Baymax?" Hiro opened his eyes to look around, looking for a familiar armored figure. Baymax was gone! "Baymax?" Hiro tried to stand only to curse when he fell back into the chair. Okay, so he was still not so steady on his feet. "Hey, Buddy? Where are you?" Hiro kicked against the ground, rolling the chair towards the garage entrance hoping Baymax was still outside. Baymax was nowhere to be seen.

Oh no…

Hiro groaned looking up at the sky for answers he knew it could not give. What on earth was Baymax up to now?! Gathering together his rapidly waning energy, Hiro got up with groan, this time actually making it to his feet. He had to find Baymax and had to do it quickly! Before the healthcare companion managed to get himself into some kind of trouble similar to his first adventure across the city of San Fransokyo. Great, just great. Just when he thought they were past that kind of misunderstanding. Sighing in defeat Hiro began to walk, heading towards the end of the driveway only to stumble to a halt two steps later when Baymax appeared from around one of the Café's corners waddling rapidly towards the garage.

Arriving at Hiro's side, Baymax lifted him without a word and continued to rush towards the garage. "What the…? Baymax? What are you doing?" Hiro asked, his heartbeat instinctively increasing in reaction to the urgency in Baymax's steps. Baymax appeared to be running which could only meant one thing, something was wrong.

Baymax didn't immediately respond. He dropped Hiro back into his chair and rolled it back into the garage before closing the garage door. "I require you to remove my armor post haste." Baymax informed him the moment the garage door was closed.

Hiro blinked up at him in confusion.

Baymax waddled over to stand in front of him holding his arms out at his sides. "It is recommended that you hurry. You do not have much time." Baymax said when Hiro made no move to comply with his request.

Hiro blinked again but reached up to press the hidden quick release he'd installed into Baymax's suit. The armor clattered to the ground. Free of his restrictive armor, Baymax bent down and picked it up, moving to stow it in the lock box Hiro had created specifically for that purpose before heading towards his docking station his actions completely baffling Hiro. Stepping into the red box, he then began to deflate.

"Um, Baymax?" Hiro stumbled to his feet once more, still firmly pressing his now blood soaked hoodie firmly onto his arm. "What are you doing? I thought you were going to help me patch up my arm?" Hiro asked in confusion.

"Step 4." Baymax said, blinking at Hiro as the last of his vinyl deflated. "Contact the appropriate care giver to administer the required care." Deflation process complete, Baymax folded in on himself and vanished from sight, storing himself in the docking station that was now safely hidden behind a pile of junk.

Hiro blinked, staring at the pile of junk before him. "What?" He asked in utter confusion, his brain still trying to make sense of everything that had just occurred. His question remained unanswered… for about thirty seconds that is… when it was answered in the most unexpected manner.

_Click._

The handle to the door connecting the garage to the house turned, the door opening to let in pale yellow light that illuminated an all too familiar silhouette. "Hiro? Are you in here?"

Oh no…

_Please no. Please tell me I'm wrong._

Baymax couldn't have just done what Hiro thought he did! He couldn't have gone to fetch _him_. Not when he knew the risks such an action posed, right? Surely he knew better than that? Hiro had told him what the risks were, after all! He'd been rambling about them all the way from Akuma Island. Baymax couldn't have gone against everything Hiro had told him! He simply couldn't have! Only… only it seemed that he had!

Tadashi stepped into the garage, flicking the garage light on to illuminate the space.

Hiro was doomed.


	22. Emergency Care

**Emergency Care**

"Hiro?" Tadashi stepped into the garage, flicking the garage light on to illuminate the space. The moment the room was sufficiently lit he ran his eyes across it, not giving Hiro even remotely enough time to run, let alone attempt to hide. So it was that Hiro was once again caught red handed in a situation he really didn't want Tadashi to see him in.

"Why are you still down here?" Tadashi asked heading towards him with a yawn. "It's way past your bedtime. I know you really want to finish your showcase project but tomorrow is another day and…" Hiro stumbled to a halt, a momentary flicker of shock flickering across his face. "HIRO?!" Tadashi cut himself off having finally spotted the blood soaked hoodie Hiro was holding pressed against his forearm. He rushed to Hiro's side, reaching out to pull the hoodie away to take a better look at the wound Hiro was obviously trying to hide. "What happened? Why are you bleeding? What on earth did you do?!"

Thanks Baymax! Thanks a lot. This was exactly the situation he'd been trying to avoid. How on earth was he supposed to tell Tadashi that he'd injured himself after sneaking out to work on a project he really shouldn't be messing with? Wait! That was it! A stroke of genius! Hiro quickly scanned the garage, taking in the mess he'd made before moving his work to Akuma Island. "I was working on my project and I tripped and fell." Hiro said, relieved that for once in his life, the truth could potentially work in his favor! Everything he said was true! Technically. Tadashi didn't need to know that the project Hiro had been working on was actually located on Akuma Island and not somewhere here in his garage.

"That's what you get for trying to work in the dark." Tadashi reprimanded lifting the fabric of Hiro's dark stained hoodie. "I know you were trying to keep the fact that you were still up a secret from us but the light emitted by your PC is far from sufficient for the kind of work we usually engage in.: Tadashi hissed and paled when he finally managed to pull the hoodie away revealing the true extent of Hiro's injury. "Hiro, we need to go to the hospital." He said solemnly, suddenly changing the subject as he inspected the large gash.

"No." Hiro's response was firm. He hadn't just managed to convince Baymax not to take him there only to have Tadashi do exactly that. What on earth had Baymax been thinking going to fetch Tadashi? Wait? How had he managed to achieve that without giving himself away in the first place? "I'm not going to hospital and you can't make me."

"Hiro…"

"It's just a cut. I know it needs stitches but you can do that. I know you can. I saw what was in that medical aid kit you have stowed in this garage. I saw the needles and thread." Hiro insisted.

"But it might be infected." Tadashi protested, pressing the fabric of the hoodie back down, guiding Hiro back towards the Café. "You could lose your arm if it is."

"Then clean it before you stitch it closed." Hiro said leaning into Tadashi. "I promise I'll tell you if I see any strange swelling, feel any hot skin around the wound or experience any fever like symptoms. If it looks like it might be getting infected you can take me straight to the hospital and I won't even put up a fight."

Tadashi glanced at him in surprise, pausing to retrieve his medical aid kit before guiding Hiro into the Lucky Cat Café. "How do you know so much about the symptoms of infections?" He asked, flicking the garage light off and closing the door.

"When you get injured as often as we do, you pick up a thing or two." Hiro pointed out wryly, quirking an eyebrow at Tadashi.

"You have a point." Tadashi agreed, turning to guide Hiro up the stairs. "But you've never shown any interest in any of it before. You've always been a handful when injured. You're a lot calmer about all that blood than you usually are. What gives?"

"Just because it looks like I'm not paying attention to what is happening doesn't mean I'm not." Hiro said with a pout. "I do actually listen and pick things up. I'm just usually too… um… panicked to remember what I already know?" Hiro offered up the only explanation he could think of.

"Agreed, which brings be back to my second statement. Why are you so unusually calm about this all of a sudden?" Tadashi asked.

_Because I've seen more injuries than you can even begin to imagine. Both my own and those of others. It's a hazard of the super hero trade. There comes a point at which you become accustomed to it. Either that or you quit and I wasn't about to quit. Not when one of the main reasons I became a hero was to make you proud of me… wherever you were…_

"Maybe I'm growing up?" Hiro offered, ignoring the pain his memories were stirring in his heart. He'd worked so hard, accomplished so much just to make his brother proud and now… now when he was finally face to face with his brother again, all of it was simply gone, erased from the world as if it had never been.

Tadashi glanced at him, his eyes filled with speculation. "Maybe you are." He agreed softly but there was something in his tone that told Hiro Tadashi was not quite satisfied with his explanation. "Sit down, before you keel over." Tadashi instructed, gently pushing Hiro down.

Hiro blinked before taking in his surroundings to find that Tadashi had managed to get them into their bathroom and was asking Hiro to sit down on the now closed toilet seat. When had Tadashi managed to accomplish all of that? Hiro complied, sinking down onto the cool porcelain with a soft sigh of relief. Come to think of it, his legs probably would not have been able to hold him up all that much longer.

Tadashi seated himself on the edge of the bath before gently removing the hoodie off of Hiro's wound once more, tossing the ruined fabric to the ground.

_There goes my favorite hoodie._

Hiro only had a mere moment to contemplate the fleeting thought before he found himself in motion once more. Tadashi gently tugged him forward, positioning his arm beneath the cool water running out of the bath tap. The unexpected motion brought on a rush of vertigo which caused Hiro to topple forward. "Woah there." Tadashi reached out to steady him before he could land face first in Tadashi's lap. "I know we're busy bonding and everything but let's save the hugs for when you are no longer in danger of ruining my awesome clothing." Tadashi teased, picking up a cloth to gently wash the excess blood away in an attempt to get a better look at what he would soon be dealing with.

"A white T-shirt combined with red check flannel pajama pants does not qualify as awesome clothing." Hiro pointed out, leaning his good arm on the edge of the bath in order to steady himself while Tadashi worked on his wound.

"Oh?" Tadashi turned the tap off. "Let me guess? You think your blue flannel pajamas, covered in random pictures of robots, mind you, are a better choice?"

"But of course." Hiro retorted tensing himself in preparation for what was coming next. "Robots make _everything_ better!"

"Hmm." Tadashi agreed absently digging out the bottle of antiseptic out of his first aid kit. "Okay, deep breath. This is going to hurt." Tadashi warned not really giving Hiro enough time to react to said warning before dumping half the contents of the bottle onto Hiro's arm.

_MOTHER F!_

That hurt. That _really_ hurt! Fortunately for him he's already been anticipating the sharp spike of pain well before Tadashi's warning allowing him to take it like a man. Not a sound escaped his lips. No cuss words, no yelling, not even a whimper. Okay, so that was not entirely true, he did hiss.

Tadashi glanced up at him sharply, raising both his eyebrows in surprise. "Well that's new."

Hiro grinned at him, the expression more a grimace than anything else but it was the effort that counted, right? "I told you I'm growing up." He said trying to sound cocky only it came out sounding strained instead.

"That you did." Tadashi agreed, reaching out to flick Hiro in the forehead. "Though you may be jumping the gun a little here. Fourteen is a long way from being a legal adult, you know. Let's see how you handle a needle being stuck into you without any local anesthetic to numb the pain." Tadashi reached into his bag to pull out a needle and thread.

Oh no!

Hiro hadn't thought of that!

His breath sped up to short panicked gasps and he fought to calm the sudden fear that coursed him with the realisation that Tadashi was far from done inflicting pain on him. He knew he had only himself to blame for this as he had been the one that asked Tadashi not to go to hospital but that knowledge did nothing to calm his rising anxiety.

"It's not too late to change your mind." Tadashi said softly, holding up the needle and thread. "I can still take you to the emergency room."

Needle. Thread. No local anesthetic… Needle… Thread… emergency room? Awe, hell no! "Do it." Hiro took a deep breath and let it out clenching his eyes closed in preparation for what was to come.

Tadashi sighed before gently running his fingers along the edge of Hiro's wound. The next moment Hiro felt a sharp prick on his skin, his nerves flaring momentarily in pain before easing once more. This was followed by the strange sensation of something moving beneath his skin. Surprisingly it was not nearly as bad as he had anticipated. "I just had the strangest dream." Tadashi commented, clearly trying to distract Hiro from what he was doing.

"Hmm?" Hiro hummed in query played along, keeping his eyes closed as Tadashi worked. A distraction would be welcome about now.

"I heard a strange knocking on the window and when I opened my eyes I thought I saw Baymax." Hiro tensed keeping his eyes clenched tightly closed.

_Don't react, Hiro. Just don't react. Don't give anything away. Breathe. Just… Breathe._

"I know. It's completely crazy right?"

_Yeah, soooo crazy._

"I mean, our bedroom is on the second story. He'd have to be able to fly to get that high and I may have done some serious programming on him but I can tell you I certainly didn't build that feature into him."

_No you didn't. I, however did._

"And that wasn't even the strangest thing about him. He was also dressed in some kind of red armour. I probably would not have recognised him if not for his eyes. And then he waved at me! Can you imagine? My missing project flew up to our window, all geared up for some kind of fight and _waved_ at me. The stress of losing him must really be getting to me."

_Yeah, the stress is getting to you. It's definitely a hallucination brought on by stress._

"It was really strange. I could have sworn I was awake though I'm not so sure anymore. I blinked and then he was gone. That's when I realized you weren't in bed so I decided to come look for you. You're lucky I woke up when I did. I can only imagine the mess you would have made of this if you had tried to patch yourself up without waking us."

_Yeah, sooooo lucky._ Hiro was going to need to have a serious talk with Baymax about the dangers of exposing their secret to others. Especially _Tadashi!_ The real lucky break was the fact that Tadashi was brushing the entire experience off as a dream!

"You probably wouldn't have even bothered to clean it properly. Though now that I think about it, it's almost like Baymax is watching over you." Tadashi shivered, his physical reaction travelling through to Hiro.

_Oh he's watching over me. He's been watching over me for longer than you'll ever know._

"Now there's a disconcerting thought especially considering that is exactly what I had in mind when I first designed him. Must have been my mind playing tricks on me but it worked out for the best, I guess. So I probably shouldn't overthink it." Tadashi continued to calmly stitch the wound, his hands remaining steady.

Hiro remained silent and simply let Tadashi work, allowing his brother's one sided conversation to die a natural death. The fact that Tadashi was using it in an attempt to distract Hiro from the stitches was yet another thing that worked wonderfully in Hiro's favour. He had the perfect excuse not to reply which made it a lot easier not to accidentally give himself away.

"There" Tadashi announced, digging in his first aid kit once more. "All done."

Hiro pried an eye open, glancing down at the neatly stitched wound on his arm. Tadashi, it seemed, was a pro. The stitching was cleaner than most of the stitching that he'd seen done in emergency rooms. When had his brother managed to obtain _that_ skill? He was about to ask exactly that when Tadashi distracted him again, using a clean cloth to wipe the remaining blood off of Hiro's arm before neatly bandaging the wound. "We'll need to check on this every day for signs of infection but I think you're good to go."

Hiro released the breath he hadn't even realized he was holding with a sigh of relief. "Thanks."

Tadashi tied off the bandage before reaching forward to ruffle Hiro's hair. "No late nights for the next two or three evenings. You need to give yourself time to recover and give that time to heal a little before you aggravate it further fiddling with your experiments." Tadashi's words were so calm, so casual and so very final making it abundantly clear that there was no way Tadashi was going to let Hiro disobey the command they contained.

Hiro bit his lip in dismay. Two days! Tadashi's restriction meant he would lose _two days_ of working on the portal. He couldn't afford to lose two whole days when time was of the essence but Tadashi was in full on big brother mode and Hiro knew this was an argument he wasn't about to win. "Okay." He agreed with a sigh already making alternate plans in the back of his mind. Tadashi was restricting him from late nights working on his project. He had said nothing about Hiro's _days_ and the time that Tadashi would conveniently be away, working on rebuilding Baymax in his lab at SFIT.

"Really?" Tadashi quirked an eyebrow in surprise.

"Really." Hiro confirmed.

"That was easy." Tadashi commented, zipping his medical aid bag closed. "Too easy." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "What's the angle that I'm missing here?"

"No angle." Hiro said in a rush, directing his best puppy dog eyes in Tadashi's direction.

Unfortunately, Tadashi knew him far too well and the look only managed to accomplish the complete opposite of what Hiro was trying to achieve. "Let's see. No late nights. No working on your experiments. Check the wound every day for infections. Tell me if it looks like it gets infected. We've covered all of that." _Please…. Please, oh please oh please don't find the loophole._ Hiro held his breath all through Tadashi's mental checklist. "Oh wait, I know what I've missed. No working on your project during the day either." _Damn it. Why? Why was Tadashi so damned SMART?!_ Tadashi grinned in victory when Hiro slumped in defeat thus confirming that Tadashi had successfully hit the nail he was seeking right on the head. "Not for at least the next 48 hours."

"But how am I going to finish my project for the SFIT showcase if I can't work on my project!" Hiro protested, unable to hold the desire to argue back any longer. Dangerous conversation narrowly avoided, he could at least vent some of his stress, right?

"Your SFIT project can afford to wait for 48 hours and if it can't you can try again next year." Tadashi replied, his response firm. "Your health is more important."

"I'm not going to die from one measly cut." Hiro retorted, petulantly.

"That's a deep cut Hiro. One that could easily reopen and get infected. This is not negotiable. 48 hours."

Hiro sulked, directing a displeased glare directly at the source of his displeasure.

"Glaring at me won't change anything. We will re-discuss this in two days." Tadashi placed the first-aid kit behind the washbasin before standing up and reaching out to help Hiro to his feet. "Now let's get you to bed before we wake Aunt Cass and she finds this mess. She'll just take you straight to the emergency room you are trying so hard to avoid."

Yup. Tadashi really did know him too well. He couldn't have picked a better motivational statement than that, even if he'd tried. Aunt Cass was the last person Hiro needed involved in the mess he had inadvertently made of the entire evening. "No, no! That's okay. Going to bed sounds like a GREAT idea!" Hiro agreed in a rush.

"That's what I thought." Tadashi said with a grin, another victory in the bag. Tadashi may have won this battle but Hiro was planning to win the war!


	23. Primal Repression

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author to be MIA - I interrupt your regular program to announce that I am going away on Saturday and will be away for two weeks. My friends and I will be in the middle of nowhere and will not have access to the internet. We're not even sure if we will have cell phone reception. I will not be able to update this story during that time. I may not even have time to write. Updates will resume after I return.

**Primal Repression**

11:36 pm.

It was 11:36 pm and the entire Hamada household was in bed, fast asleep. It was a moment for the record books. The first time such a feat had been achieved in years. No one was out and no one was working late on any projects. After a busy day dealing with customers and a surprisingly listless nephew, Aunt Cass had decided to skip her nightly horror movie and had gone to bed early. Even though he had more than enough to work on, Tadashi had returned early from Campus and ordered Hiro straight to bed. Hiro had grumbled under his breath but had quickly fallen silent and complied when Tadashi directed a pointed look between Hiro and Aunt Cass, the meaning behind it clear. 'If you don't do what I say I'm going to tell Aunt Cass what you are really hiding beneath that long sleeve black shirt you are wearing in the middle of summer.' Hiro had obediently slipped in beneath the cool sheets of his bed and curled up to sleep. His self-appointed guard dog had joined him a few minutes later.

And so it was that the Hamada household was tucked safely away in their beds as early as 10 pm.

The evening was peaceful, a cool breeze drifting in through the open window, to caress black strands of hair. Both messy and neat. Pale moonlight filtered in through the cracks of the partially open blinds, gently illuminating the mess of robotics parts sprawled all across Hiro's side of the room. Tadashi had not been impressed to find Hiro tinkering with them earlier when he'd arrived home from school but had quickly calmed down after inspecting Hiro's wound to find that it appeared to be healing rather nicely.

All in all, everything and everyone was at peace. That is, until…

A sharp yell tore the peaceful evening apart, the cry echoing in the small room, filled with pain, terror and desperation. A small figure sat up in fright, messy hair sticking up in all directions, short startled pants escaping his lips as his mind fought to orientate itself. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong and he had to figure it out quickly before the situation got out of hand.

Another cry pierced the night.

Hiro blinked, his heartbeat fluttering rapidly in his chest. Someone was yelling, the panic in the sound reminiscent of the terror that had him in its grip on more than one occasion. Especially since finding himself unexpectedly in the past. Someone was yelling, the cry echoing throughout the room and for once in his life that someone was not him. That someone was Tadashi!

Hiro leaped to his feet and ran to Tadashi's side of the room, his bare feet barely making a sound upon the ground. He tripped, stumbled and stubbed his toe three times in his desperation to cross the room but he didn't care, focused solely on the desire to get to Tadashi's side as quickly as possible. Reaching out, he grabbed hold of the edge of the screen that separated his side of the room from Tadashi's and pulled it open, rushing straight into Tadashi's space without pause.

The sight that greeted him when he finally got there was as unexpected as it was terrifying. Tadashi was still in bed, fast asleep and tangled in his sheets. He was flailing about, fighting an imaginary foe and very clearly tightly in the grips of a nightmare. The tables had turned.

Continuing his headlong dash, Hiro arrived at Tadashi's side and reached out to grab hold of him. Big Mistake. The moment Hiro managed to restrain one of Tadashi's arms, Tadashi flung the other one out hitting Hiro square on the jaw. Hiro's head clicked back with the force of the blow and he could have sworn he saw stars but he was not about to be so easily deterred. He reached out again, this time managing to catch both of Tadashi's arms. "Tadashi!" Hiro cried out, climbing onto the bed. He swung himself over his brother's thrashing body and straddled him in the hopes of gaining better leverage "Hey, Tadashi. Wake up. It's me."

Tadashi continued to thrash, fighting against Hiro's restraint.

"Tadashi. Come on, please wake up." Hiro shifted his grip reaching for Tadashi's shoulders instead in an attempt to shake him awake. Tadashi connected with Hiro's left shoulder and the right side of his head. "Seriously." Hiro growled in sudden frustration, shifting in an attempt to stay on the bed even though Tadashi was fighting really hard to get him off. "Why must your aim be so freakin' good? Wake up already." Afraid and bordering on desperate now, Hiro released Tadashi and slapped him across the face. "Stop hitting me and wake the hell up!"

Tadashi's eyes snapped open and he reached up to cup his now red cheek, staring up at Hiro in disbelief. "Did you…" Tadashi paused, panting as his mind caught up with reality. "Did you just hit me?"

Hiro leant back, settling on Tadashi's stomach with a scowl. He refused to reach up to cradle the injuries Tadashi had first inflicted upon him before Hiro had returned the favour. "You refused to wake up. What the hell was I supposed to do?" He demanded crossing his arms only to hiss and quickly uncross them in reaction to the sharp pain that flared through his still injured arm.

Tadashi blinked up at him for a moment before sitting up a guilty expression settling on his face. "Did I wake you with my nightmare?" He asked turning his face away in shame.

"No." Hiro lied. "I was still awake."

"At ten to twelve?" Tadashi asked, glancing at the clock beside his bed, which clearly read 11:48. "I thought we agreed there would be no more late evenings until your arm healed enough to allow you to work comfortable." Tadashi couldn't help but turn to face Hiro once more.

"We agreed I would be in bed. I was in bed. You didn't remember to forbid me to have trouble sleeping." Hiro pointed out, staring pointedly at Tadashi. "Not that it would have made any difference even if you had."

Tadashi's lip quirked in reaction to the dry humour hidden in Hiro's statement. "I suppose not." Tadashi agreed reaching up to awkwardly cup the back of his own head. "Sooooo…."

"Sooooo…" Hiro echoed.

Tadashi fell silent, dropping his arm back down onto the bed once again avoiding Hiro's gaze. It would appear that Tadashi had no intention of explaining what had just occurred. Unfortunately for him, Hiro was not about to let this one go.

"Oh no you don't." Hiro poked him in the shoulder. "We're not playing this game. What's going on?"

"I thought that was abundantly clear." Tadashi ran a nervous hand through his hair. "I had a nightmare."

Wait… Did Tadashi just give him a snarky reply? The warning bells began to ring in Hiro's head. Snark was _his_ weapon of choice in retaliation to the world in general, not Tadashi's. He hadn't even used it after finding out Baymax had been stolen. If Tadashi was using it now, it meant that something was seriously wrong. "I gathered that much when you punched me in the head while thrashing about in your bed." What? He was not above using Tadashi's inherent sense of guilt in order to worm an honest answer out of him. It was all for a good cause.

"I punched you?" Tadashi exclaimed, turning sharply back towards Hiro.

"Twice." Hiro quirked an eyebrow, using Tadashi's own weapon against him. "Well, technically three times. You connected with my jaw, my shoulder and the side of my head but only two of them hurt."

"I…uh…" Tadashi reached out to touch Hiro's face searching for signs of injury. "Hiro, I'm so sorry."

Hiro reached up and grabbed hold of Tadashi's hand before it reached his face, tugging it down to rest it back on the bed, keeping it firmly in his grasp. "You have nothing to be sorry for." Hiro said with a scowl. "You were having a bad dream and didn't even know I was there. It's my fault for grabbing you like I did. So, what was the dream about?"

Tadashi twitched in reaction, the recoil only noticeable because Hiro was still holding his hand. "Hiro…" Tadashi fell silent once more, clearly not really in the mood to talk about it. Well that was just too bad.

"You're the one that always told me I shouldn't keep things bottled inside, that doing so only makes the nightmares worse by giving them more power over my mind. Was that just a speech that you used to wrangle the truth out of me?" Hiro asked, squeezing Tadashi's hand. Tadashi was not the only Hamada versed in the art of emotional manipulation.

Tadashi tensed taking a deep breath before speaking. "You're one to talk. You're also hiding something."

Okay, so Tadashi was not as oblivious as Hiro had hoped. Strange that he'd chosen to remain silent instead of bugging the hell out of Hiro in his bid to get at the truth. "I'm not the one waking half our household in the middle of the night with my yelling." Hiro pointed out, not about to be drawn into a conversation about the secrets he himself was keeping. This conversation was about Tadashi, after all.

"I thought you were already awake." Tadashi said, catching onto the meaning behind Hiro's statement very quickly.

"So I lied. Are you surprised?"

Tadashi sighed, running his hands through his hair once again. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." He apologised, once again using the apology to dodge the real question Hiro wanted an answer to. If this continued on much longer Hiro was going to slap Tadashi again, only this time he'd be doing it to knock some sense into him as opposed to merely waking him.

"This is exactly why I lied." Hiro growled, poking Tadashi in the chest once more. "I don't want your apologies. What I want are answers. What the hell has you so worked up that you're having nightmares when you've never had them before? Not even after our after parents died."

"Hiro… I don't really want to talk about it." Tadashi replied stubbornly, giving Hiro his first direct answer. Well, that was progress.

"Why? Don't you trust me?" Hiro demanded, leaning into Tadashi's personal space. "Am I so unreliable that you can't even share the details of a mere nightmare with me? Is this what our relationship has come to? I thought we were brothers? I thought brothers were supposed to share everything? I thought…"

"You've got it all wrong, Hiro." Tadashi cut Hiro off, shaking his head in denial. "I just don't want you to worry. You have enough on your plate as it is."

"And you have even more." Hiro retorted in frustration. "All I have to worry about is my SFIT showcase project." That was a lie but Tadashi didn't need to know that. "You on the other hand are always taking care of everything else, Aunt Cass, café customers, school, your friends… and most of all me. Why can't you let someone take care of you for a change?"

Tadashi blinked, staring at Hiro in surprise. "You noticed all of that?" He asked, clearly shocked.

Hiro reached out and used his free hand to flick Tadashi on the forehead, retaliating for all the times Tadashi had done exactly that to him. "Of course I noticed all of that." Hiro reprimanded. "I'd have to be a complete idiot not to." Truth be told, Hiro was a complete idiot. He hadn't noticed. Not until Tadashi died. Only then did Hiro realise how much weight his brother really had shouldered. Not having the opportunity to really show his appreciation for everything Tadashi had done for him had been one of his biggest regrets and he wasn't about to let the opportunity slip by a second, okay technically third time round.

"I… I just…" Tadashi was overwhelmed. "I just want to keep my promise. You know," He reached out with his free hand to cup Hiro's cheek, "the one I made to you when mom and dad died."

_Two figures stood before a grave stone, rain pouring down in droves. They were sheltered beneath a single black umbrella, the thin fabric protecting them from the crying sky but nothing could protect their hearts. The little boy clung tightly to his brother's hand, sucking on his thumb in distress._

_Mommy and Daddy were gone, never to return. He'd never hear mommy sing to him again, or have daddy scoop him up into a warm embrace, blowing raspberries into his tummy to make him laugh. They would never eat together, sleep together or watch stupid cartoons together all because of the stupid car. He wanted to cry, to scream and throw a tantrum until they came back only he was a big boy and big boys did not cry._

_The older boy reached out to turn the younger one in towards him, kneeling down in a puddle to bring himself face to face with the little boy. His large dark brown eyes were filled with grief, echoing the pain raging in the little ones heart but there was also something else there, a strength and determination fuelled by unconditional love that would forever imprint itself into the little boy's memories. This was accompanied by a promise that neither would forget. "We'll be okay. We still have each other. As long as we still have each other we can face anything the world throws at us. Together. I'll protect you. I promise."_

Hiro swallowed back the tears that threatened to escape his grasp once more. When had he become such a wuss? Crying at every little thing? He really needed to get a hold of himself. "Yeah, I remember." Hiro whispered, before turning that very promise to his advantage. "But that promise works two ways you know. You said we'd be okay as long as we still had each other, that we'd face all our problems together." And with those words Hiro knew he had finally won.

Tadashi's expression softened. "Alright, I'll tell you." He relented reaching up to ruffle Hiro's hair. "I keep dreaming that I'm trapped in a burning building. Everything around me is on fire and I can't get out. I don't know where I am or why I'm there but I know that I'm dying and there is nothing I can do about it."

Hiro tensed the moment Tadashi mentioned a burning building, his breath catching in the back of his throat. Tadashi was dreaming about dying in a fire. He couldn't possibly be dreaming about the showcase fire, could he? Only one way to find out. "Do you see anything other than fire?" Hiro asked carefully.

Tadashi frowned, thinking about it before responding. "Well I know I'm inside some kind of building. I don't recall any details but I am always aware of walls and a ceiling. The room is full of experiments I've never seen before but they are all burning, so the details are rather indistinct. Sometimes I'm running and other times I'm trapped underneath something but every time there is no way out. I keep looking for something. I can see shadows from the corners of my mind but when I turn to face them they disappear. The bright flames of the fire obscure them from my view and then… then I die. I know I haven't lived anything like it but it's the scariest thing I've come across in my life."

He was! Tadashi was dreaming about the showcase fire!

Hiro was suddenly awash in a series of mixed emotions ranging all the way from excitement right through to anxiety and confusion. Tadashi didn't remember reliving the timelines like Hiro did. He wasn't aware they had experienced the SFIT showcase twice already and were heading towards it for a third time but he did remember the fire and he did remember dying. Okay, remember might be a strong word to use seeing as the information was filtering through from his subconscious mind but there was something there. Now all Hiro had to do was actually make sense of it.

Hiro squeezed Tadashi's hand. "It will be okay." He whispered, releasing Tadashi's hand to lean in and embrace him. "I'll protect you. I promise."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really like this chapter. It's nice to see Hiro take care of his big brother for a change and that promise… I don't know where that came from but be still my aching heart!


	24. Not Crazy, Just a Little Unwell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (IMPORTANT – Author to be MIA): Still going away on Saturday XD. I'm returning on the weekend of the 7th of May. Updates will resume once I return.

**Not Crazy, Just a Little Unwell**

"Awe, how adorable!"

_Click._

"My two favorite boys curled up together in bed!"

_Click._

Hiro and Tadashi were rather rudely woken the next morning by an over-excited Aunt Cass squealing in delight over the sight of Hiro curled up next to Tadashi on Tadashi's bed all while snapping at least a dozen pictures with her cell phone. Hiro had fallen asleep beside Tadashi shortly after echoing the promise Tadashi had made to him all those years ago. Tadashi had, not questioning the promise or Hiro's reason for it, simply held his little brother close as he too fell asleep. And the rest, as they say, was history.

Hiro winced when another squeal echoed through the air, quickly followed by a few more clicks indicating the increasing number of incriminating pictures that were being stored by his over eager Aunt. "This isn't a photo shoot, dammit!" Hiro growled as he sat up. Reaching out he attempted to grab the phone from his Aunt. "Can't you see we're trying to sleep here?"

"Language, Hiro." Tadashi reprimanded on a yawn, stretching his arms up as he too joined the land of the living. "Morning, Aunt Cass."

"Good morning." Aunt Cass sing-songed in response, grinning as she took one last picture for posterity. "Breakfast is ready." She pocketed her phone and turned to leave the room pausing at the doorway to leave one last remark just before exiting. "Assuming you can pry yourselves apart long enough to come and get it, if not I'm sure I can find a crowbar in the garage." With that she was gone.

Hiro groaned, covering his face with an arm as he flopped back down onto Tadashi's bed. "She is so going to use those pictures as blackmail material against us." He commented, already dreading the day Aunt Cass threatened to show those off to her customers or something.

"Awe, come on, they're not that bad." Tadashi commented sitting up and ruffling Hiro's hair as he slipped out of bed.

"They make me look like a big baby that needs his big brother's presence just to get some sleep." Hiro whined.

"Then we'll just have to tell them the truth. The big baby that needs his brother's company, just to get a good night's sleep, is me." Tadashi commented, filling the room with the sound of shifting fabric as he changed out of his pajamas and into his clothing.

Hiro pried an eye open peeking at Tadashi just in time to see him slip into a long sleeve white cotton shirt. "You don't need to do that." Hiro said softly. "I won't tell anyone about your nightmares."

Tadashi stilled, allowing Hiro's words to echo through the room for a moment before sitting down on the bed with a sigh. "If I keep having them I may have to tell someone myself." Tadashi replied, reaching out to run a stressed hand over his face.

"You mean, someone like me?" Hiro asked, his heartbeat suddenly increasing in anxiety. _Please, please, oh please say yes, someone like me and not someone like…_

"I mean someone like a psychologist." Tadashi clarified, confirming Hiro's worst fear. Why did things always have to end up here? Tadashi had doubted Hiro's mental stability during the previous rerun and now he was doubting his own. Insanity did _not_ run in the Hamada gene pool! Why did Tadashi keep thinking it did?

"You're not crazy." Hiro said, sitting up.

"No one said I was crazy." Tadashi flicked Hiro on the forehead. "Stop jumping to conclusions."

"But you're considering going to see a shrink. Only crazy people go to shrinks." Hiro exclaimed, vehemently against the idea of his brother going to see a shrink. Tadashi was Hiro's rock, infallible and steady throughout the storm that was their life. He was not supposed to be doubting his own state of mind!

"That's not true, Hiro. Many normal people go to see psychologists. Psychologists are very much like doctors only their primary focus is a patient's mental health as opposed to their physical health. Our mind, just like our body, can also get sick and sometimes requires a bit of help to get better. There is nothing abnormal or strange about it."

"But you're not sick!" Hiro got up onto his knees and leaned into Tadashi's space, staring into those big brown eyes that always seemed to see and know far too much. If Tadashi ever found out how much power his gaze really had over Hiro, Hiro would be doomed.

"I'm having nightmares. Really bad ones in which I think I'm dying. Every night. That's not normal for an adult, Hiro and I'm not on any medication that could be causing them." Tadashi kept his response calm, listing the facts in a cool, collected manner. Damn it. Why did Tadashi have to be so logical?! How was Hiro supposed to argue with that?

"What if they weren't nightmares?" Hiro asked, leaning back to create space between them once more, giving him a better view of Tadashi's facial expression.

Tadashi frowned in confusion. "What else would they be?"

"What if they were memories?"

"Hiro, if they were memories, I'd be dead." Tadashi pointed out.

If they were memories, I'd be dead.

Those words echoed through Hiro's mind carrying a weight Tadashi couldn't even begin to imagine because every word in that statement was true. Tadashi was dead, or at least he had been. Tadashi died twice and each time Hiro followed soon thereafter, assuming his initial two years could be counted as soon. Each time they died, Hiro found himself back in the past, reliving the worst time of his life while Tadashi remained oblivious to what had occurred only this time was different. This time Tadashi's subconscious mind was somehow accessing the memories of his death and replaying them to him in the form of a nightmare. Tadashi wasn't crazy, or mentally ill or even simply over stressed. He was starting to remember and there was no way Hiro could tell him that without adding himself to the list of potential patients Tadashi's future shrink would gain. "Yeah, if they were memories, you'd be dead." Hiro agreed, his tone flat.

Tadashi frowned at him before reaching out to make a complete mess of Hiro's hair. "Don't worry too much about it. It's just a dream." Tadashi tackled Hiro, pushing him down onto the bed before grabbing a pillow and softly hitting Hiro over the head with it. "I'm okay." Thunk. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." Plonk, "You'll still have to deal with me for a long time. Till we're both old and grey." Swoosh, bap.

Tadashi was trying to play, using the action to lighten the heavy atmosphere brought on by their conversation. It was a tactic he'd often resorted to when things got too serious and Hiro would often follow suit, the fun and humor being one of the things he'd loved the most about their relationship. Only… only things were different now. Hiro was different now and he just couldn't find the energy to play along. So it was that he just lay there, lost in the darkness of memories Tadashi remained completely oblivious too, waiting for Tadashi to realize he was not retaliating. He didn't have to wait long. "Hiro?" Tadashi paused, pillow lifted over his head in preparation for another blow. "You okay?"

Hiro blinked up at him. His vision was a touch blurry and it took him a minute to realize it was being caused by stray tears in his eyes. Reaching up, he used the edge of his long sleeved pajamas to wipe them away before sitting up once more. "Like you, I am fine. Just a little sleepy. _Someone_ wanted to cuddle last night and I didn't get as much sleep as I'm used to."

Tadashi snorted, dropping the pillow back down onto the bed. "Says the night owl that doesn't usually come to bed before 3am in the morning. You got more sleep than you usually do." Tadashi retorted, getting up to finish changing, slipping into a long pair of boring brown pants. Tadashi really had no sense of style. Half his wardrobe was brown for crying out loud. Hiro really should do something about that. Maybe add some red and blue? _Don't look at me like that! Red and Blue is cool!_

"That may be true but I'm also usually not awake before noon." Hiro pointed out slipping out of Tadashi's bed. He yawned, stretching his arms up as he sleepily padded back to his side of the room, intending to go straight back to bed. The sleeves of his pajamas slipped down his arms to pool at his elbows, revealing the bandage neatly wrapped around his wound and the blood stain marring its white surface.

"Hold up, Hiro." Tadashi called out, rushing to his side. Reaching out, he caught hold of Hiro's arm and lowered it to inspect the stain. "What did you do to your arm? I thought I told you not to aggravate it?"

Hiro blinked at Tadashi in confusion before blinking down at his arm, surprised to see that blood had seeped through the bandage. He wracked his brain, trying to figure out what could have possibly caused it and came up completely blank. "I don't know. It was okay yesterday."

Tadashi quirked an eyebrow in disbelief. "Hiro…"

"I only tinkered with mega-bot. I didn't do anything strenuous, I swear." Hiro retorted.

"So no heavy lifting, rough housing or general tom foolery?" Tadashi questioned.

"Cross my heart," Hiro crossed his heart, "Hope to d…" He abruptly cut the rest of the expression short suddenly realizing just how stupid it was. Who on earth had come up with that expression anyway? Why would anyone hope to die? As someone who had lived through the experience twice now, he could safely say that dying was _NOT_ something he wished to experience again. "I swear. All I did was research stuff on my PC and make a few minor modifications to mega-bot when I got tired of reading. The only thing that comes remotely close to fooling around was when I had to wrestle… oh…" The light bulb suddenly went off in his head. So that's where the aggravation to his injury had come from.

"When you had to wrestle?" Tadashi prompted, asking Hiro to expand on the answer he had cut so abruptly short.

Tadashi was looking for an explanation, something he could use as fuel for the lecture that was likely just hovering on the tip of his tongue only Hiro couldn't give it to him. If he did, it would only lead to more guilt, apologies and awkward conversation for the injury had most likely been aggravated during the wrestling match he had had with his brother while Tadashi was still caught in the throes of his nightmares. So it was no big surprise that he chose to lie instead. "Mochi wandered in here while I was tinkering with mega-bot and decided that my spare parts would make a good bed. I had to grab him before he broke something and well you know Mochi. That darned cat just hates it when people try to grab him."

Tadashi quirked a brow at the explanation before shaking his head in disbelief. "You know, for someone with an IQ as high as yours, you sure pull off being an idiot well. I should have added tackling Mochi to the list of things you're not supposed to do." He muttered, tugging Hiro back to his side of the room before encouraging him to sit down on his bed once more. "Sit. Stay." He ordered, directing one last warning look at Hiro before slipping out of their room, heading towards the bathroom he had stowed the medical aid kit in.

Hiro heaved a sigh of relief. For a moment there he had been convinced Tadashi was not going to buy his story. The lies he had to tell just kept piling up ever higher and they were bound to reach critical mass sooner or later; at which point they would likely come tumbling down around his ears. Knowing his luck that would probably happen at the worst possible moment but unfortunately the truth was not an option. He'd tried that already.

Tadashi returned a few minutes later, first aid kit in tow. Sitting down on the bed, he reached for Hiro's arm and began to carefully remove the stained bandage. Discarding the bandage Tadashi gently cleaned the excess blood off using a warm damp cloth before carefully inspecting the stitches to see if they were still holding. Relieved to see no serious damage had been done, he then retrieved a new bandage and began to wrap it around Hiro's arm. Each movement was calm, gentle and sure. It would have been a sweet bonding moment if not for the tension hanging thick in the air. "I'm sorry." Hiro broke the awkward silence that had somehow settled between them, just as Tadashi tied the new bandage off, securing it firmly in place.

Tadashi glanced up, blinking at him in surprise.

"I'm sorry for always making you worry about me." Hiro expanded, responding to Tadashi's unspoken confusion. "You're always taking care of me and I can't even return the favor without messing it up and making it all about me again." Where had that come from?

The words that escaped his lips surprised Hiro as much as they did Tadashi only deepening the concerned expression already etched upon Tadashi's face. "Hey, where's that coming from?" Tadashi reached out to pull Hiro in towards him, resting Hiro's forehead on his. "I like taking care of you, bonehead. It's what big brothers are for."

Hiro's lip twitched in response to Tadashi's comment, but his chest continued to ache, guilt and pain making its presence known with a vengeance. Here he was, fighting to save Tadashi's life and all he could do was mess everything up, again and again, requiring Tadashi to pick up the pieces. "Once, just once I'd like to be able to take care of you instead." He whispered.

"You do take care of me." Tadashi whispered in response. "You listen to all my complaining without scorn or judgement. You tease me, force me to put all my problems in perspective and make me laugh. You challenge me to push myself beyond the boundaries of my own limitations and teach me that nothing is impossible. You drive me absolutely crazy and sometimes make me want to grab you and shake you so hard that your teeth rattle but you're my little brother. You and Aunt Cass are the only family I have and that means the world to me. So please, don't put yourself down for being exactly who you were meant to be."

_Heart… don't break… please don't shatter into a million pieces._

Family. In this world the three of them had only each other to call family. It was a fragile balance, two brothers and a single parent trying to make the best of an already tough situation. Yet, despite it all they had managed to find happiness. He'd taken that happiness for granted, not realizing how precious and fleeting it was until the moment fate decided to intervene. It shattered the already fragile balance apart only to leave devastation in its wake, making the already small family even smaller. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. It was life and from that tragedy a new strength and been born. "I will protect you." Hiro whispered, repeating the promise he had already made. "I promise."

Confusion and concern flickered through Tadashi's eyes in reaction to Hiro's words but they were quickly replaced by love. Hiro knew what was going through his mind. Tadashi wanted to question it, wanted to understand why Hiro had made that promise twice in less than twenty four hours but instead he chose to accept it giving Hiro the space he clearly sensed Hiro needed. "I know you will." He affirmed, ruffling Hiro's hair with a grin. "Because you've already proven that you can accomplish absolutely anything you set your mind to."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so this chapter ends on the same note the previous one did with Hiro repeating the promise he just made. I wonder if he's doing it to steel his resolve to get it right this time round. I really tried to change the end but the chapter just refused so after about an hour of trying to figure out how not to end this chapter on the same note as the previous one, I just gave up. On the bright side we finally got to hear Tadashi's response to it!
> 
> Tadashi: Sit. Stay
> 
> Hiro: Woof!
> 
> Tadashi: Not funny, Hiro.
> 
> Hiro: * Grin *


	25. Showtime

**Showtime**

_Bing._

_Tadashi: Where are you?_

Hiro's phone buzzed, displaying a message on the screen. His phone was currently lying beside one of the consoles in the control room located across the still functional portal he had been working on for the last two months or so. Hiro absently glanced at it but chose to ignore the message. He had other, more pressing things to take care of. Last minute calibrations and safety checks for instance. Tadashi could wait. He wouldn't have to be doing these if not for the 48 hour restriction Tadashi had placed on him right after he had injured himself so Tadashi could just deal with the consequences of his actions!

Who was he kidding? He'd be doing this no matter how much extra time he had to complete the project. Hiro bit his lip and checked settings on the dials for what was probably the twelfth time since he had arrived on Akuma island a mere hour ago.

_Bing._

_Tadashi: The showcase has already started. You said you'd meet me here?_

The second message drew Hiro's attention back to the row of screens located behind him. He had modified them, hooking their feed up to a camera that he had installed in the showcase building while no one was looking. The camera was directed at the stage, giving Hiro a clear picture of what was going on. Tadashi was standing on the right hand side of the stage, scowling at his phone all while tapping his foot in impatience.

Yup. Tadashi was clearly annoyed. Probably because Hiro had lied to him when he'd run out of the house earlier claiming to be headed towards the showcase building with the intent of setting up early. He'd promised to meet Tadashi there. Only he hadn't gone to the showcase building at all. If Tadashi knew where he _really_ was, he'd probably be a little more than simply annoyed.

_Bing._

_Tadashi: It's almost time for your presentation!_

Okay so maybe Tadashi was more than a little annoyed but that couldn't be helped. Hiro turned up the volume filling the empty space with the sound of the current presenter speaking into the microphone, from the sounds of it managing to catch the end of the presentation.

_Ring. Ring ring. Riiiiiing._

_Caller ID: Tadashi_

Hiro walked over to the phone and switched it to silent, letting Tadashi's call go to voice mail. He was so going to pay for that later. If there was one sure way to annoy Tadashi, it was to ignore his calls when he was urgently looking for you. The fact that, as far as anyone knew, Hiro was actually supposed to be at the showcase with Tadashi was only making it worse but there was no going back now.

_Buzz._

_Tadashi: Hiro, I swear, if you pull a no show, you and I are going to have a long talk. I thought your project was finished and all ready to go?_

Tadashi was right. They were going to have a long talk but not for the reason's Tadashi was listing. Hiro wasn't planning on pulling a no show. Okay, so technically he wasn't there but he had something else in mind. Something so awesome it was going to blow everyone away. Assuming he didn't give in to the fear and anxiety that was swirling within him first. The possibility that he was going to mess this up was actually a lot higher than he was comfortable with and if he did… well if he did he probably wouldn't be around to be on the receiving end of the long talk Tadashi was threatening to give him.

_Buzz._

_Tadashi: Seriously Hiro! You're up NEXT! WHERE ARE YOU?!_

"Next presenter, Hiro Hamada." The announcer's voice echoed through the control room, travelling through the microphones Hiro had activated. Okay, this was it: showtime!

_Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz. Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz. Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz. Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz._

_Caller ID: Tadashi_

Ignoring the vibrating cell phone, Hiro flicked a switch, sending a signal across the wireless network. The lights around the stage dimmed and a hidden screen; that he'd discovered installed at the back of the platform; began to drop onto place. A murmur of surprise filled the room, the microphone broadcasting his audience's reaction to the unexpected events that were unfolding. Even Tadashi looked surprised, the buzzing of Hiro's phone dying rather abruptly as he cancelled the call to pay attention to the stage.

Screen in place Hiro turned and exited the control room, heading towards the camera he had set up on a tripod. Standing in front of it, he took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself before tapping the remote he had installed onto the side of his super hero helmet. The camera turned on and began to broadcast a signal, displaying the result on the large screen that was now located behind the stage. Hiro's visor flickered before activating as well, displaying the feedback from the camera installed at the showcase building so Hiro could track his audience's reaction.

And in three, two, one…

Swallowing past the lump of nerves lying thickly in his throat he took a step forward and began to speak. "Hi. My name is Hiro Hamada, and I've been working on something a little bit different. Professor Callaghan," Hiro paused and lifted his visor to look deep into the camera before continuing. "I hope you like it."

Dropping his visor back into place, Hiro took another step forward and reached for the camera pausing for a moment when his hand connected with the lever that would turn it. This was it. His moment of truth. Only he wasn't sure he was ready for it. He was about to get into sooo much trouble it wasn't even funny. There was a 99 percent probability that Tadashi was going to kill him after this but truth be told there was no turning back now.

Hiro turned the camera to point it at a familiar red armored figure before taking a few steps back to stand beside the healthcare companion. "This is Baymax. He is an ingenious piece of technology that has been programmed to handle over 10 000 medical procedures but most of all he is my friend." Yup, he was in trouble. A moment of shock flickered across Tadashi's face only to be quickly replaced by fury, his entire body taunt and tense as he glared at the screen Hiro was projecting his presentation onto.

"My brother designed him and he's absolutely amazing. I kind of borrowed him without my brother's knowledge or consent. Sorry about that, Tadashi. I'll give him back, right after this. I promise." Hiro's apology did nothing to quell the anger on Tadashi's features but that was to be expected. "Now you're probably wandering what my brother's project has to do with my presentation. We'll get to that." Hiro stepped closer to Baymax and tapped him on the stomach, the clunk of his suit connecting with Baymax's echoing through the open space of the facility. "I built the suits we are wearing. They may not look like much but they can withstand several tons of pressure, repel both bullets and blazing hot flames and even generate heat to keep us warm when needed but they are not the reason I'm here."

Hiro took a few steps forward, once more approaching the camera as he spoke. "I'm here because I intend to submit this…" He reached out and turned the camera once more, turning it to face the already active, glowing portal. "…as my project. This is Project Silent Sparrow, or what's left of it. Project Silent Sparrow was a secret government experiment that was headed by Alistair Krei and Robert Callaghan several years back." The rage on Tadashi's face was once more replaced by shock and disbelief. Even though Hiro had installed the camera to watch the reactions of his entire audience as a whole, the only person he could really focus on as he spoke was his brother. After all, despite how things may appear to an outsider, the only person he was actually doing any of this for was Tadashi.

"The intention was to create a teleportation device that could be used to transport people and goods across large distances in an instant. This was accomplished by using two portals, an entry portal and an exit portal. The applications of this tech would have been limitless if they had succeeded. Unfortunately, the experiment failed." Hiro turned the camera once more, revealing the burnt out portal for all to see.

He fell silent for the moment, letting the image speak for itself before continuing his presentation. "The portal cannot teleport living things. The magnetic containment field, used to stabilize the matter that is being teleported, failed the first time this was attempted, causing the second portal to overload and blow apart. This anomaly was discovered too late and the lesson that was learnt from it came at a high price. It cost someone their life. Or at least, that's what everyone thought."

_Pause. Breathe and…_

"Professor Callaghan…" Hiro twisted the camera back around, turning it face the active portal once more. "Your daughter is not dead." Hiro stepped back, moving closer to the portal. Baymax joined him, waddling into view. "She's still in there, drifting in suspended animation waiting for someone to find her. I've traced the irregularity detected in the magnetic containment field back to its source and have re-calibrated the portal to cater for organic life forms. It should hold, for a while at least." Hiro walked around Baymax and climbed into his back slotting his hands and feet into the holds he'd designed for that purpose. The electromagnets in his suit activated securing him into place. "I've increased the sensitivity of the scanner my brother designed for Baymax. We're going to find her and we're going to bring her back."

"Baymax, wings." Baymax extended his wings. "Thrusters." Baymax engaged his thrusters lifting them into the air, Hiro watched the awe on his brother's face knowing it would shift to something altogether different the moment Tadashi realized what Hiro was really up to. "Full, thrust." Baymax engaged full thrust. The awe on Tadashi's face shifted to confusion, then fear and finally horror as Hiro and Baymax headed straight towards the portal. The horror was the last thing Hiro saw. The moment they entered the portal, the signal supplying the video feed died cutting him off from the world he knew and loved.

The portal was a lot like he remembered, the swirling colors of the first time he'd seen it blending and twisting with a vibrancy that had been renewed the second time he had experienced it right after dying in the showcase building at Tadashi's side. It was an ethereal experience that held a wealth of grief, pain and confusion stirring a well of mixed emotions he couldn't even begin to understand within him. This portal, this place in the middle of both everywhere and nowhere was his destiny, intricately linked to the most monumental moments of his life and Hiro knew deep down that there was no escaping his ties to it. Shaking off the melancholy that threatened to overwhelm him, Hiro once again focused on the task at hand. "Have you found her yet?"

"Life form scan seventy six percent complete." Baymax replied falling silent once more to complete the scan. Hiro didn't have to wait very long. "My sensor is detecting signs of life. Coming from there." Baymax informed him pointing towards the left.

"Alright." Hiro confirmed with a nod, readjusting his position atop Baymax. "Let's go get her."

Baymax veered off towards the left, heading straight towards the signs of life he'd detected. Seven minutes. It took seven minutes to locate Abigail's pod. In the greater scheme of things it wasn't all that long but they were seven of the longest minutes of Hiro's life because he knew exactly what was at stake. Arriving at the pod, they circled it and began their return journey which was a much simpler affair than the last time they had executed it seeing as there was no debris to dodge.

Finally! Something was finally going right!

"Warning. Danger detected ahead." Baymax started Hiro, suddenly breaking the tense silence between them.

He should have known… Hiro should have known better than to celebrate his success before they were out of the woods. Nothing in his life was ever simple. Why should this be too? "What's the problem, buddy?" Hiro asked, his voice tense.

"The portal appears to be destabilizing." Baymax informed him.

No… I t couldn't be… Hiro's mind attempted to reject the information but it was futile. Baymax's words echoed through his mind. The containment field was failing once again and the portal was going to tear itself apart! All of Hiro's hard work was unraveling before him and the slim safety net he'd put into place in an attempt to avoid this exact situation had vanished from sight. Hiro was once again, trapped in the portal, his life balanced on a thread.

He cussed under his breath, throwing all sorts of colorful words at the problem in the hopes that it would somehow make a difference only it didn't. It appeared that his calculations were off. He hadn't managed to stabilize the portal enough to handle the amount of data he was throwing in its direction and they needed to get out before it shut down, trapping all of them in there forever. "Baymax!"

"Full thrusters are already engaged." Baymax informed him, flying straight towards the bright white light that marked the portal's presence.

"Are we going to make it?"

"I can get you both to safety." Baymax replied, slotting the rocket fist onto the pod.

"Baymax! No! I'm not going to leave you here! Not again!" Hiro protested reaching out to grab hold of Baymax's arms, stray tears obscuring his view.

"My thrusters are not powerful enough to get us to the exit before the containment field fails." Baymax informed him before adding the words that continued to haunt Hiro's nightmares to this day. "Are you satisfied with you care?"

"Baymax, no! There has to be another way! I'll think of something. I promised I'd give you back to Tadashi right after this!" Hiro replied, desperately clinging to Baymax, still fighting to deny the fact that he was reliving a nightmare from his past… again... "I can't do that if I leave you here."

"There is no time. Are you satisfied with your care?"

"Please! No... I can't lose you. Not again. You're the only one that knows about the other timelines… you're the only one I can talk to."

"Hiro, Tadashi is waiting for you."

Tadashi is waiting for you. Those words tore through his heart, leaving a gaping wound as they faded away because Baymax was asking him to choose… Baymax was asking Hiro to choose between him and Tadashi and after all the effort that he, correction _they_ had put into the events of their current timeline there was only one correct answer he could give. "I'm satisfied with my care."

Baymax deployed his rocket fist propelling Hiro and Abigail away from him as he once again deactivated, drifting away to be lost once more in the depths of the portal, taking the chip Hiro had since programmed and inserted into him along with him.

The pod flew through the space and burst out of the portal seconds before the device imploded in on itself, the large metal ring crumbling to the ground with a loud clatter of parts. Momentum carried them away from the immediate danger, the pod skidding along the rails designed to hold it before coming to an abrupt halt against the platform that the control room was located on. Hiro tumbled off, falling onto the platform in direct view of the camera that was still projecting onto the screen in the showcase building. The feed in his helmet reactivated, displaying the stage, his audience and the terrified expression on his brother's face but Hiro didn't see any of it as he lay broken upon the ground, tears of grief pouring down his face.

He was once again staring failure in the face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Insert evil laugh here.* And so I leave you guys on this note as I vanish for about two weeks! XD. On a more serious note... I worked really hard to finish this so I could leave you guys with one last update before I leave. I did not intend for this chapter to end the way it did. It just took a turn for the worse before I could stop it!


	26. Tempest

**Tempest**

_Clang...ang...ng_

The last of the portal debris hit the ground, the clatter of metal connecting with concrete echoing through the space that surrounded him. It was over. Everything was finally over. He had accomplished the goal he had set for himself and managed to save Abigail. As a result he had probably also managed to save his brother. He should be happy, overjoyed and filled with the deep sense of satisfaction that always followed a job well done but he felt empty instead. The cost of it had been far too high taking his remaining proof of his very sanity from him. Baymax was gone. Again. Taken from him in much the same way as he had been the first time they had entered the portal together.

Wait...

It was the same. The circumstances that led to the loss of Baymax were the same as the first time round which meant that there was a chance that...

Grief made way for hope, the glimmer of the light at the end of the tunnel spurring Hiro back into motion. Pushing himself up off the ground, he pulled off his helmet and threw it aside, ignoring the feed that continued to display the inside of the SFIT showcase building. It meant that there was a chance that _it_ was there! The chip that held the unique soul that made his Baymax, his. It just had to be. It was the only thing that made sense after all. Right?

Hiro rushed forward, heading straight towards the back of the pod and the armored rocket fist that was still connected to it. _Please be there... please, oh please, oh please._ Reaching out he grabbed hold of the Armour and pulled, working to disengage it from the pod. _Come on!_ The rocket fist resisted his efforts, sticking to the pod. _Come on, come on, come oooooon!_ Hiro pulled harder, leaning back with all his weight in an attempt to add leverage to the action. The additional leverage was just enough to finally achieve success. _Pop._ The red fist slipped out of the socket at the back of the pod and sent Hiro sprawling to the ground, landing smack bang on top of him but Hiro barely noticed already preoccupied with prying the Armour's fingers loose. _Please be there... Please, oh please let the chip be there..._ The fingers dropped open, the palm of the hand lying face up in Hiro's lap only to reveal nothing but empty space.

It wasn't there...

The chip Hiro had so desperately been hoping to find was gone and with that his hope was shattered. Sharp pain coursed through his chest and he folded in on himself renewed tears of grief falling from his cheeks to pool in the red palm of the rocket fist that was all that remained of Baymax his mind drifting back to painful memories that threatened to spiral out of control and consume him from within.

Why?

Why was he destined to always lose those he loved the most? He'd fought so hard, considered every angle he could possibly think of only to end in failure…

_You are my patient._

He'd tried. Every action, every decision had been made with the intent to protect Tadashi, with the intent to get back that which he had lost. He'd suffered injury, both physical and mental and experienced a wealth of pain and agony but none of it had mattered. It was worth it, every single tear, every single drop of blood was simply the price he was willing to pay to protect those precious to him and to have come so close only to fail right at the end was a new kind of agony that he could not even begin to describe…

_Your health is my only concern._

He'd lost Baymax. He'd lost the only person in the universe that understood what he was going through and in doing so had broken the most recent promise he'd made to his brother. _I'll give him back, right after this. I promise._ Who was he kidding? He hadn't even had the right to make that promise to begin with. He'd been cocky, arrogant and it was that very arrogance that had cost him Baymax. All of this was his fault. All of it had been his fault from the very beginning. All of it was a result of the bad decisions he had made and now… now he was once again alone, trapped in an alternate reality burdened by memories he would forever have to keep buried deep in his head.

_Hiro, I will always be with you._

Hiro's grief was suddenly blown away by the unexpected resurgence of a very old memory, the last words he'd heard from Baymax the first time he lost the healthcare companion suddenly clear in his mind. _I will always be with you._ How could he have forgotten that? If there was one thing he'd learned from all the loss he had experienced in the past it was the truth of that simple statement. Baymax wasn't gone. Baymax, just like Tadashi would _never_ be gone because he'd touched Hiro, impacted his life in ways that could never be erased and would continue to exist as long as Hiro had remembered, existing alongside a version of Tadashi that would only ever continue to exist in Hiro's mind.

Hiro wasn't alone.

A wave of determination washed away what remained of his grief and spurred him into motion once more. He still had things to do and had to hurry if he wanted to postpone the interrogation that was sure to be looming over his head soon. Hiro shoved the armour hand off his lap and onto the floor before leaping to his feet. Running towards the camera he turned it off, cutting the feed to the showcase building before rushing into the control room. Leaning down he grabbed his toolbox before rushing out once more, hesitating just a moment to snatch up and pocket his cell phone.

He had to get her out… He had to get Abigail out of the pod. He'd wasted enough time drowning in self-pity! A new goal in sight, he rushed back towards the pod, pulled out a few tools and began the arduous task of prying open the control panel that had suffered damage during the impact the pod had suffered upon re-entering Hiro's new reality.

_Buzz. Buzz buzz. Buuuuuzzz._

Half way into his task, Hiro's phone began to buzz in his back pocket signalling an incoming call. Hiro absently pulled it out and swiped to answer, not really paying attention to his actions.

"Hiro! If you don't tell me where you are right this instant I'm going to tell Aunt Cass to ground you for LIFE! Scratch that, You ARE grounded for LIFE! What the hell are you _thinking,_ bonehead?! Have you lost your mind?!"

_Caller ID: Tadashi._

Whooops… This was not a call Hiro had any intention of answering. Unfortunately for him, he had been too focused on the task at hand to really register that he'd automatically answered his phone. Story of his life! "Um… Hi, Tadashi?" Hiro greeted his brother warily, already resigning himself to the lecture he was about to receive.

"Don't you 'Hi, Tadashi', me." Tadashi growled, his rage a physical presence in the room despite the fact that it was required to traverse a wireless network to get to Hiro. "Tell me where you are right this instant so I can come get you."

"I don't think that's such a good idea right now." Hiro replied, tucking the phone between his ear and his shoulder so he could free his hand to work on the panel he was currently half buried in, expertly snipping and rewiring the various wires he had exposed. "I'll come home when I'm done here."

"You'll come home when I say you'll come home and I say you're coming home right now." Tadashi snapped. "Do you have any idea what you've just done?"

Hiro dropped the wire cutters he had been using with a clatter, reaching up to press the phone to his ear. "I know exactly what I've just done." Hiro snapped back, hurt triggering anger within him. Why did Tadashi have to yell at him like this when he'd just risked his own life to save his brothers? It wasn't fair. "I pulled Callaghan's daughter out of an alternate dimensional space and am now trying to figure out how to get her out of the pod she is still trapped in! So I would really appreciate it if you could put your righteous indignation on hold long enough to let me finish before launching into full blown lecture mode." Awe Shaiza. Hiro face palmed himself just as the last word left his lips. He really shouldn't have said that.

"Hiro." Tadashi growled the word through clenched teeth, anger, frustration and fear swirling in his tone. "I'm going to pretend you didn't just say that and give you one last chance to tell me where the hell you are."

"Why don't you ask your beloved professor?" Hiro snarled, still reacting to the sharp pain of hurt that Tadashi's anger was fueling within him. It wasn't fair. He'd expected this reaction but it simply wasn't fair! But then again life wasn't exactly fair was it?

"My beloved professor? What on earth are you going on about?" Tadashi asked, exasperation creeping into his voice.

"Callaghan!" Hiro snapped. "I'm talking about your beloved professor Callaghan! Abigail is his daughter. Surely he still remembers the location of the experiment that he was convinced cost her, her life! Why don't you just ask him where I am?"

"Hiro, I don't have time to deal with your childish jealousy right now. The moment you entered that portal, everyone went crazy this side. Callaghan and Krei got into a heated argument in front of everyone here. I didn't catch much of what they were arguing about but caught enough to pick up that they were involved in some kind of top secret military experiment that was never supposed to see the light of day."

"I'm not a childish or jealous!" Hiro yelled, resisting the urge to throw the phone across the room. "It's not my fault you're so blinded by Callaghan's achievements that you cannot even begin to comprehend that the man you admire so much might actually be flawed! The project they were working on is Project Silent Sparrow." Hiro clarified. "As I said in my presentation, they were experimenting with teleportation and they messed up. They messed up _big time_ and I fixed it!"

"STOP IT, HIRO!" Tadashi yelled back. "Just stop it! I need you to actually listen to what I am trying to tell you. They were working on a _top se-cret mil-li-tary expe-ri-ment._ " Tadashi carefully enunciated the last words, emphasizing their importance before proceeding to drop a bomb shell. "I suspect you're about to surrounded by military personal and I want to get you out of there before you mysteriously go missing. Now tell me where the hell you are so I can come get you!"

Military…

Project Silent Sparrow was a military experiment that had gone wrong...

Which meant that any information pertaining to it was considered to be top secret. And Hiro had just casually exposed its existence to a showcase building full of people!

Hiro went white.

Oh crap.

To say that he'd just gotten himself into a world of trouble was probably an understatement. "Akuma Island!" Hiro yelled into the phone, reaching out to quickly finish the repairs to the panel that would open the pod Abigail was still trapped in. "I'm on Akuma Island!"

"Akuma Island?!" Tadashi exclaimed in dismay. "How am I supposed to get to you there?"

"Ask Fred to bring you." Hiro supplied hastily, reaching down to grab hold of some electric tape, twisting and taping the wires he had cut together into new configurations. "His family has a helicopter. Heathcliff can pilot it."

"Heathcliff?" Tadashi asked in confusion not quite following.

"Fred's family butler." Hiro explained, biting on the tape to tear it from the main roll before moving onto the next set of wires and repeating the process.

"Fred's family has a butler?" Tadashi asked, sounding dazed.

"Yes, and a helicopter. Keep up, bonehead. Ask Fred to bring you here. I doubt he'll have an issue with it, especially if you tell him it's an emergency. He's a really nice guy. Oh and tell him I'll build him a lizard suit that breathes fire in repayment. That should make him happy."

"Hiro…"

"I'm just quickly going to get Abigail out and then I'll wait for you near the pier." Hiro continued cutting Tadashi off. "If you're not here in twenty minutes I'm going to hide in the surrounding woods. Don't look for me until its safe. I'll contact you." Hiro hung up and tossed the phone aside effectively cutting off any protest Tadashi may have voiced.

Twenty minutes…

Hiro had twenty minutes to open the pod, get Abigail safely out of it, leave here somewhere where she would be easily found _and_ get himself to the pier to catch a lift in a helicopter that may or may not be coming for him. Assuming of course the military didn't get here first. If he didn't know any better, he might be tempted to think he was involved in the plot of one of Fred's super hero movies! Fred was going to be delighted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sure Hiro, your life is not a super hero movie. Not at all * Fingers crossed behind back *
> 
> And I'm back! Unfortunately I was super lazy while I was away. I only managed to write about 600 words in the two week long holiday and then threw the last two paragraphs away when I continued this chapter after getting back. Hope you guys like it.


	27. Rescue

**Rescue**

_8 minutes 16 seconds._

It had taken Hiro 8 minutes and 16 seconds to complete the repairs to the pod, Abigail was trapped in. The seconds had ticked by far too quickly for his comfort, raising his anxiety levels ever higher with each breath that he took. Completing the final repairs, he reached out and triggered the release button with trembling hands. The pod opened easily with a soft swish.

_13 minutes 37 seconds._

Five minutes. Hiro wasted another five minutes pulling Abigail out of the pod and dragging her away from the experiment, the pod and the rest of the mess he had made of the facility in his endeavors to rescue her. Satisfied that they were a safe distance away, he then checked her vital signs, relieved to see that she was still breathing and very much alive.

Still no signs of the military.

Turning away from Abigail Hiro leaped to his feet and fled, running as if the very hounds of hell were on his heels. The military may not have arrived yet, but he was sure that their arrival was only a matter of time, a commodity did not have much of at this stage. Ironic when taken into context with the fact that he was actually reliving parts of his life.

_16 minutes 23 seconds._

The moment Hiro exited the facility, he quickly assessed the situation before him, his breath catching in the back of his throat in fear the moment he registered three boats speeding straight towards the island. Tadashi, it seemed, was not far off in his guess. Hiro was about to receive some unwelcome visitors on the island and they were probably not very happy with him right about now.

_16 minutes 39 seconds._

Hiro glanced up, searching the skies for some kind of sign that would tell him what his next action should be, or more specifically searching for signs of a certain helicopter. Luck, it seemed, was still with him as he spotted exactly what he was looking for. Heading towards him, at a speed that was fortunately faster than that of the boats on the water, was a helicopter, one that he'd recognise anywhere. Big Hero 6 had, after all, made ample use of its existence to get them out of a few tight spots in the years he'd fought crime before finding himself back in the past but that was neither here nor there.

_19 minutes 47 seconds._

The three minutes that the helicopter took to arrive were filled with a flood of agony and anxiety, Hiro's eyes flickering anxiously between it and the boats on the water, filled with indecision as to whether he should wait for it or run and hide in the woods. He remained where he was. He had, after all, promised Tadashi that he'd give him twenty minutes and was not really willing to go back on his word. He had broken enough promises as it was.

_20 minutes 17 seconds_

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

A large gust of wind threw Hiro's hair into complete disarray as the helicopter turned to hover directly above him.

_20 minutes 42 seconds_

A thin rope ladder tumbled out of the helicopter door to hang suspended from it, hovering a few steps to Hiro's right. It fluttered in the wind created by the helicopter's rotor blades. Hiro's eyes flickered back towards the water, his anxiety soaring to new heights when he saw they were nearing the pier. His time, it seemed, had run out.

_21 minutes 36 seconds_

Launching into a sprint he ran straight towards the ladder, propelled himself into the air and caught hold of it with his right hand, his feet now dangling several inches off the ground. His heart beat a rapid rhythm in his chest, waiting for his last desperate bid to fail. Waiting for him to get caught. Wait for…

Hold on a minute! He didn't have time for this. Reaching up with his left hand, Hiro grabbed hold of the rung above the one he was currently dangling off of.

_23 minutes 6 seconds_

Hiro reached up and lifted himself into the helicopter. Large hands took hold of his arms and pulled him the rest of the way in before slamming closed the helicopter door. 23 minutes 6 seconds… It took a whole twenty three minutes and six seconds from the time of his phone call to Tadashi for Hiro to reach safety and they were not exactly out of the woods yet. The helicopter still needed to get away from the island without getting shot down. Will the excitement never end?

As if in reaction to his thoughts the helicopter chose that moment to do an about turn, causing Hiro to lose his still precarious balance. Tumbling down he slid across the small space and landed on something soft extracting a soft grunt from both himself as well as the person he landed on top of.

One, two, three… Hiro began to count, mind too preoccupied with the potentially armed men outside to truly register what was going on inside the helicopter. He managed to count all the way up nineteen before he was interrupted. Not by a gunshot, as he had expected but by a hyperactive interjection. "So you're Hiro! It's great to finally meet you, man. Tadashi has told us so much about you. All good things, I assure you but I see he left out all the best parts!"

"Fred…"

Hiro looked up to find familiar blue eyes peering down at him only to realize he'd somehow landed smack bang in Fred's lap. Oh great. "He never told me you were some kind of spy on the run from the military. So imagine my surprise when he phones me to tell me he needs my help to get you off Akuma Island before the military get to you!"

"Fred…"

"I mean, how cool is that? Swooping down at the very last moment to snatch you up just as the hands of the military begin to close in! I mean, it's scary, obviously, but how cool? I never thought that…"

"FRED!" Tadashi's voice echoed loudly in the small space of the helicopter, finally catching Fred's attention and cutting his overexcited rant short. "You can have your excited rant later. Right now, we have more important things to discuss." Tadashi said, giving Hiro a rather pointed look.

Hiro gulped. Maybe he should have taken his chances with the military?

"Yeah! Yeah you're absolutely right, Tadashi, my man." Fred agreed reaching down to pull Hiro up off his lap. "I got way ahead of myself there. Sorry." He dropped Hiro down beside him before turning sideways to face Hiro. "The name's Fred. School mascot by day, but by night... I am also a school mascot. I am a major science enthusiast. I've been trying to get Honey to develop a formula that can turn me into a fire-breathing lizard at will. But she says that's not science." Fred inserted air quotes as he spoke before lifting an arm up to punch the air above him. "But I will prevail! We'll show her, right? Tadashi tells me you offered to build me a lizard suit that breathes fire."

"Unbelievable." Tadashi groaned and face-palmed muttering something under his breath. Hiro only caught a few words, Fred's renewed hyperactive rant drowning the rest out. "… comic book otaku. Should have never told…"

"I have several design ideas." Fred pulled out a comic book. "I would like it to look like this guy." He flipped the comic book open, turning a few pages before pointing at a picture of Godzilla. It's face must be like.. raor."

"Fred…"

"And rawr." Fred pulled a couple of monster faces in demonstration. "And it must have giant claws," Fred wiggled his fingers. "And a big mouth,

"Fred…"

"So it can spit out a lot of fire, like whoosh and if you could include a switch that makes it go invisible that would be, like AWESOME! Can you imagine how surprised people will be if they suddenly see a burst of fire appearing out of the middle of nowhere? It would probably be terrifying but so cool. I could go out and catch villains by surprise and…"

"FRED!" Tadashi raised his voice for a second time, once again catching his friend's attention.

Fred closed his mouth, mid-sentence and blinked at Tadashi in confusion.

"That's not what I meant." Tadashi took a deep breath, running a hand down his face as he fought to regain control of both himself and the situation. "Despite how cool you may think it would be, my brother is not some kind of international spy on the run from the military. He's just a kid with too much time on his hands, too much intelligence in his head and a tendency to act before he thinks things through. All of this is a result of his impulsive nature only this time he's bitten off more than he can chew and I want to know what the hell he was _thinking?_!" Tadashi finished, once again directing the full force of his glare at Hiro.

Great. Just dandy. Just when he thought he was about to successfully avoid Tadashi's interrogation. Who was he kidding? Fred's rant had only been delaying the inevitable. "I… uh…." Hiro stuttered, licking suddenly dry lips as his mind fought to find an explanation Tadashi would accept. "I just wanted to save Callaghan's daughter." Oh no… no no nononononoNO! Just when he thought he'd managed to fix his broken mind to mouth filter!

Tadashi quirked at eyebrow, completely unfazed by the expression of dismay that had now taken residence on Hiro's face. "And how exactly did you know that Callaghan's daughter even needed to be saved in the first place?" Tadashi asked the question Hiro knew was coming the moment he'd let his previous statement past his lips. Sadly, he's set himself up for it.

"I… uh…" Hiro floundered, still at a complete loss for words. His eyes flickered around the space, taking in the minor details around him hoping for a distraction. As expected, Heathcliff was piloting the helicopter, pointedly pretending to ignore the conversation that was going on behind him. Fred was still beside him, curiosity and awe filling his bright blue eyes and Tadashi… well Tadashi was seated across from him, arms crossed across his chest, glaring daggers at Hiro. If looks could kill Hiro would have been dead several times over.

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

The silence stretched between them.

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

Tadashi began to tap his foot, using the motion to silently inform Hiro that he was still waiting for a reply.

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

Hiro shifted awkwardly in his seat.

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

"So," Unsurprisingly, Fred was the one to break the awkward silence. "I've been meaning to ask. How did you know about Heathcliff and the helicopter? I've kind of been trying to keep my family situation on the down low until I knew everyone better because you know… people get really weird about these kinds of things and I wanted the freedom to just be me. I know Tadashi say's you're not a spy but I don't see how could know all of this without…"

"Not now, Fred." Tadashi cut him off for a third time, sending Fred a pointed look that caused Fred to fall silent and shrink in on himself, before returning to his stare off with Hiro.

"I… uh…" Hiro tried again chewing his bottom lip.

Tadashi released a frustrated sigh, throwing his arms up in the air in agitation. "I swear, Hiro, I'm going to throw you right out of this helicopter if you don't give me more than I… uh… soon. You better start talking and you better start talking now because I've had it up to here with you!" Tadashi waved an arm above his head in illustration, anger flashing in his eyes. "What the hell is going on? How did you know about Project Silent Sparrow? How on earth did you find the lab it was run in? Why did you steal Baymax and why the hell did you not tell me anything? Just how long have you been lying to me?" Tadashi finished, hurt creeping into his tone to join forces with the anger that was already tearing holes into Hiro's heart.

Why?

Why did this have to be so hard? Tadashi was never supposed to be mad. He was supposed to be proud, sharing in Hiro's victory and celebrating the fact that not only had Hiro managed to get into SFIT, he had also saved someone's life in the process. All Hiro wanted was to make things right, to save his brother and experience a happy uncomplicated life only, after everything he had been through, he really should have known better than to expect that. "It's complicated." Hiro replied looking away, the disappointment in Tadashi's eyes finally breaking down his walls of defiance.

"Simplify it." Tadashi ordered shortly, his tone hard and unyielding.

Hiro blinked, blinking back tears that threatened to fall down his face. He couldn't afford them. He couldn't afford to give in to his weakness again. Not here. Not now. Not when he had so much riding on his ability to convince his brother that he actually knew what he was doing. Squaring his shoulders in determination he turned to face his brother once more, slamming his defenses back into place. "I only did what I had to."

"Did what you had to?!" Tadashi exclaimed in disbelief. "And what exactly, pray tell, were you hoping to accomplish? If your goal was to become a wanted man I have to say you certainly accomplished _that!_ If you think your age is going to get you out of this one, you have another thing coming. Illegal bot fights is one thing, messing around with top secret government experiments is another thing entirely!"

"I WANTED TO SAVE YOU!" Hiro yelled, suddenly cutting Tadashi off.

Oh no…

"What?" Confusion replaced the anger on Tadashi's face.

No, no nonononono NO! Work mind to mouth filter! Work, damn it!

"I wanted to save her." Hiro hastily repeated his statement, changing the pronoun in the hopes of diverting Tadashi's attention away from his inadvertent slip. "I wanted to save Abigail Callaghan. Why does no one seem to care that I saved someone's life?

Tadashi scowled, disappointment once again on his features as he crossed his arms across his chest. "We care. Of course, we care that you saved Abigail's life. It's how you went about it that we all have a problem with."

"And how exactly was I supposed to have gone about it then?" Hiro demanded, his own anger rising to protect him from the hurt Tadashi continued to inflict upon him. It wasn't fair. It simply wasn't fair!

"Well, you could have started by not digging up government secrets in the first place."

"If I didn't dig up the information on Project Silent Sparrow, Abigail would still be out there!"

"Not your problem." Tadashi snapped in response. "It's the government's problem. Not yours. I'm sure the government was working on a place to rescue her. There was no reason for you to interfere the way you've done."

"They were NOT!" Hiro yelled, leaping to his feet only to duck down with a hiss when his head connected with something. "They were not working on a plan to get her out because they thought she was dead! They shut down the entire experiment and went on with their lives all while she remained trapped in an alternate dimensional space without any way out!"

"That was still not your problem!" Tadashi yelled, fear and emotion once again getting the better of him. "You had no business digging up the information for this project let alone mess with it the way you have!"

"Big words coming from you." Hiro snarled in return. "Would you have preferred it if I had tried to contact the government instead of fixing the experiment myself? I'm sure they were just waiting for some smart ass teenager to tell them they had made a mistake. They would have taken one look at the contents of my email and immediately launched a rescue mission." Hiro's words practically dripped sarcasm. "Teenage boys they have never heard of are such reliable sources, after all. Or perhaps you would have preferred it if I pretended I didn't know anything at all? I could have just pretended I didn't know she was out there, trapped and alone, waiting for death with no one to help her. Is that what I should have done? Is that what you would have done?"

Is that what you would have done?

With those words, Hiro knew he had won because he already knew the answer to that question.

_Someone has to help._

Tadashi could no more refuse someone assistance than he could stop breathing. He'd proven as much when he'd selflessly run into a burning building to rescue Callaghan and even though Hiro had managed to change Tadashi's fate, he had not changed Tadashi's core personality.

_Whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup-whup._

Tadashi bit his lip and fell silent, the echo of Hiro's words still hanging between them as the helicopter continued on towards its destination.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys. Please accept my apologies for the slower than usual updates at this stage. I am playing a lot of catch up after returning from a holiday in all areas of my life – work, home, dance, ect. Have a long list of things I need to take care of which is seriously keeping me insanely busy. Returned to a pile of work, a rat problem, dance competitions, dentist appointments, upcoming renovations and flu among other things. I am still writing, just struggling to find the time I had.


	28. Truth

**Truth**

"I probably would have done the same."

Hiro was just about to step out of the helicopter when the unexpected words registered in his mind. He froze mid-step and turned to look at Tadashi in surprise.

"You asked me what I would have done." Tadashi clarified softly, responding to the confusion in Hiro's eyes. "I probably would have done the same. I don't think I would have been able to live with myself if I'd knowingly turned away from someone who needed assistance when there was something I could have done to help."

"I know." Hiro admitted, just as softly, resting a hand on the helicopter's door frame. "I shouldn't have asked you that. It wasn't a fair question. I'm sorry." Not giving Tadashi time to respond, Hiro turned away and stepped out of the helicopter with a heavy heart. The moment his feet connected with the ground he turned and headed towards Fred's mansion, the familiar building tugging at his senses as he recalled all the times he and the gang had met up there to test Hiro's inventions, plan their next move and just hang out.

Tadashi silently followed after him, the sound of his steady footsteps foreign in the environment they were in. Hiro had never been at Fred's house with his brother. Tadashi had already been dead by the time he had first come here and Hiro couldn't shake the wrongness of it all, his mind still battling to separate disparate memories from one another.

"You're not off the hook, you know." Tadashi commented, pausing at Hiro's side. That's when Hiro realized that he'd stopped walking, having paused to take in Fred's house all while lost in memories of a time that no longer existed. "You never answered my questions." Tadashi continued, joining Hiro in his evaluation of Fred's home. "Or Fred's for that matter. How did you know Fred's family had a helicopter?"

"Fred told me." Hiro replied absently.

"You know Fred?" Tadashi asked, surprised. "I didn't realize the two of you had met."

Hiro blinked, shaking off memories in favor of processing Tadashi's question before silently groaning in frustration. Not again… Would his mind to mouth filter ever work correctly? "Not exactly." Hiro hedged, mind racing to find a decent explanation only to come out blank. He was tired. Tired of fighting, tired of dodging uncomfortable questions and tired of constantly getting himself into trouble with Tadashi.

"Not exactly?" Tadashi prompted.

"It's complicated." Hiro replied, falling back on the only words his brain was willing to come up with when cornered by Tadashi's sharp wits and intellect.

Tadashi sighed. "Seriously, Hiro. We don't really have time for this nonsense, you know? Why can't you just give me a straight answer for once?"

"Because you won't believe me if I do." Hiro replied, miserably, his entire body posture slumping as he fought the urge to just curl in on himself and pretend none of this was happening. Tadashi was already losing his patience with Hiro and giving in to his moment of weakness was certainly not going to help him convince Tadashi that he wasn't losing his mind when the truth finally came out. That's right, _when_ not _if._ If there was one thing Hiro had learnt in all his years of living with Tadashi it was that he wasn't really good at keeping secrets from his older brother.

"Hiro!" Tadashi sighed, running a hand through his own hair in agitation, fighting to find the right words to express the turmoil of emotion coursing through him. The single word echoed through the silence that followed Tadashi's frustrated exclamation before shattering in the face of the words that came next. "What did I do to break our relationship like this?" He asked, his inner turmoil creeping into his tone, revealing the wealth of hurt he had clearly been trying to hide.

Wait…

What?!

Hiro blinked, turning to face Tadashi in shock. Where on earth had Tadashi gotten _that_ idea? Their relationship wasn't broken. Was it? And even if it was, all the blame would lie with Hiro, not with Tadashi. "You didn't break our relationship."

"I must have." Tadashi tugged on a few strands, the action holding a surprising amount of aggression, contradicting his usual demure manner. "Even though mom and dad died I always thought we would be okay. As long as we had each other… and Aunt Cass." Tadashi added as an afterthought. "I thought I was someone you could rely on. That I could protect you from the world and anyone who might want to harm you. All I wanted was to help you become the great person you were destined to be. You used to tell me everything and now… now you're shutting me out and even getting into serious trouble with both the law and the government. Trouble I can't protect you from. Where did I go wrong?"

"You didn't break our relationship." Hiro repeated. "Nor did you do anything wrong. The mess I have made of my life is my mess and the reasons I did what I did are my own. I didn't shut you out because I don't trust you, I shut you out because I want to protect you." Hiro's walls were beginning to crack and the truth was beginning to slip. _See, it was only a matter of time._ He shouldn't be saying this. He knew he shouldn't be saying any of it but he couldn't help himself. Tadashi was not to blame for any of it and it was about time his brother realized that.

"Protect me? It's not your job to protect me. As the oldest, it is my job to protect you." Tadashi protested.

Hiro shook his head. "Not true." Hiro disagreed. "You're my _brother,_ not my father. I know you've always been trying really hard to fill the void our parent's death left behind but it's not fair. It's not fair to me or to you. It's not your responsibility to raise me and look after me. You'll have more than enough of that in the future, when you have your own kids. This relationship," Hiro pointed to Tadashi and then to himself and then back to Tadashi, "is a two way street. As siblings we're supposed to look after each other and I figured it was about time I did my part."

"Hiro." Tadashi ran his hands through his own hair with yet another sigh. "You're just a kid. You're supposed to be worrying about yourself. Your only concerns should be getting a good education, enjoying your youth and maybe coming up with a handful of petty, and by that I mean things that shouldn't involve the police of the government, pranks to keep things interesting. You're too young to be protecting me from some imagined threat or to be out trying to single handily save the world."

"I'm not as young as you think." Hiro countered. "Age is just a number. It's experience that leads someone to grow up. You should know that better than anyone else."

"It's that kind of experience I've been trying to protect you from." Tadashi tugged his hair again, revealing just how agitated he really was. "Just because I had to grow up quickly doesn't mean you have to do the same."

"Unfortunately you don't get to decide that." Hiro pointed out. "Life does and you don't have as much control over it as you might think."

Tadashi dropped his arms to scrutinize his brother, carefully evaluating the statements Hiro had just made and weighing them up against everything he knew about his baby brother. Hiro could practically see the gears turning in Tadashi's head and he held his breath in anticipation of the conclusion Tadashi would draw. "What happened to change you so much?"

The question was not entirely unexpected yet it still managed to take Hiro by surprise. "Do you really want to know?" He asked, his brain silently protesting the route his heart was leading him down. He shouldn't be doing this. He shouldn't even be considering it but he wanted to tell Tadashi the truth so badly it hurt.

"I wouldn't be asking if I didn't." Tadashi's reply was wary, confusion and dread swirling in his dark brown eyes.

"You really want the truth?" Hiro asked again, seeking some kind of confirmation that he was doing the right thing. He was on the verge of taking a big risk here, a risk that had historically failed him and he couldn't help but be wary to take the final leap of faith.

"What kind of question is that? Of course I want the truth." Tadashi ran a hand over his face. "I've been trying to pry it from you for a while now but you just keep giving me evasive responses. To be honest, you're driving me more than a little crazy, here!"

_You and me both._

Tadashi was not the only one this situation was driving a little crazy. Keeping his knowledge a secret all while pretending nothing was up was a lot harder than one might imagine. Almost as hard as having your brother doubt your sanity for telling the truth. "No judgement?" Hiro continued to seek reassurance, the words slipping past his lips while his brain was still trying to catch up to the decision he had already made.

Wait…

Telling the truth had gotten him nowhere last time. The last time Hiro had tried to tell Tadashi the truth, his brother had assumed he was insane and needed clinical help. Why then was he considering going down the same route again?

"Hiro, what on earth is going on?" Tadashi exclaimed, a flicker of fear coursing through his eyes.

Oh yeah… that's why. Tadashi was scared. He was completely at a loss to explain Hiro's actions or motives for them and that fear was eating away at him. It was on the verge of consuming him, slowly driving a wedge between them and Hiro couldn't stand it.

"If you really want the truth you have to promise me you won't judge me or try to convince me to get psychiatric help." Hiro said, desperate to put a safety net in place to protect himself from the repercussions of what he was about to do. This wasn't going to end well. There was no way this could possibly end well…

"Hiro, you're scaring me."

"Promise me." Hiro insisted, unwilling to proceed without extracting the slim promise from his brother. He knew it probably wasn't going to mean much in the greater scheme of things because it couldn't change what Tadashi thought. It could only change what Tadashi did. There was no way his brother was going to believe him. He hadn't believed him the first time Hiro had tried to tell him the truth which meant that it probably wasn't a good idea but he couldn't help it… Hiro couldn't help but cling to the slim hope that this time would be different.

"Okay, okay, I promise." Tadashi gave in to Hiro's insistence, raising his arms in a placating gesture, fear and confusion still flickering in his eyes. "No judgement."

"And…" The promise was not yet complete.

"No psychiatrists." Tadashi relented. "Not that we'd be able to find one while trying to hide you from the military." He added on a disgruntled mutter.

"You're struggling to understand my actions because I am not who you think I am. Don't get me wrong, I'm still Hiro, your brother, but I am not from the same timeline that you're from. I'm from the future. I died and then woke up to find myself in the body of my younger self with my memories of my future still intact."

"Hiro…"

"You promised me no judgement." Hiro hastily interjected, cutting what Tadashi was about to say off. The dismay on his older brothers face hurt, more than Hiro would ever be willing to admit.

Tadashi fell silent.

"I know what you're thinking. I'm not crazy, you know. I'm also not acting out in an attempt to get your attention. There are easier, safer ways of getting your attention, believe me! Bot-fighting for instance." Hiro provided an example he knew Tadashi would understand, hoping it would prove to his brother that he wasn't acting completely on impulse alone. He had thought things through. He had thought them through long and hard.

"You were bot-fighting to get my attention?" Tadashi asked, clearly focusing on the revelation that would be the easiest to deal with.

"In part, yes." Hiro smiled wryly. "I also really enjoyed the thrill it gave me."

"It's both dangerous and illegal." Tadashi pointed out, an all too familiar disapproving scowl settling on his features.

"All part of the appeal." Hiro retorted with a grin.

"Hiro." Tadashi growled frustration beginning to creep into his voice once more.

"Relax, bro. I haven't been to a bot fight in a long time." Hiro quickly jumped in, in a bid to placate his brother. "I kind of had other things to focus on." He finished softly, bringing the conversation back to the point Tadashi was trying so hard to ignore.

Silence…

Silence stretched between them once more as Tadashi carefully processed everything Hiro had just told him. "Assuming what you're telling me is even remotely plausible, how did you manage to travel back in time?"

"We already covered that." Hiro pointed out. "I died."

Tadashi frowned, a flicker of fear returning to his eyes. "I got that but that doesn't really explain your presence here. People die all the time. Not many of them claim to travel back in time after the fact."

"I think the portal has something to do with it."

"The portal?" Tadashi raised an eyebrow in question.

"Project silent sparrow." Hiro clarified. "The second time I died I remember seeing the same swirls of color that…"

"Wait!" Tadashi raised a hand to stop Hiro. "The second time you died? Just how many times do you think you've died and traveled back?"

"Just twice." Hiro replied before adding as an afterthought. "So far."

"So far? You think you're going to die again?" Tadashi asked, more that a trace of doubt creeping into his tone.

Hiro shrugged, looking away. "Everyone dies. It's only a question of when."

"Only most of us stay dead afterwards." Tadashi pointed out drawing Hiro's attention back to him.

Hiro peered up at him through his messy bangs, his heart aching as he remembered Tadashi's very real and very permanent death. "Yeah, most stay dead afterwards." He agreed, softly, threads of sorrow escaping him.

Tadashi caught hold of Hiro's gaze and kept it, once again inspecting Hiro closely in a bid to evaluate his both his sanity and his conviction. "You're asking a lot of me." Tadashi said softly.

"I know." Hiro whispered in response.

More silence and scrutiny…

"How old were you when you died… the first time round." Tadashi hastily clarified, preempting the question Hiro was just about to ask in return.

"Sixteen."

Tadashi flinched. "And the second?"

"Fourteen."

"Where was I?" Tadashi whispered, horror and grief chasing away his earlier fear. "Where was I while all of this was going on?"

"The first time or the second?" Hiro asked, this time managing to ask the question Tadashi had predicted mere moments earlier.

"Both."

"You know the dream you told me about?" Hiro asked, looking for an easy way to answer a question that was far from easy to face.

"Yes."

"It's not a dream."

Tadashi blinked, the gears in his head suddenly shifting into overdrive as he sought to process the new information.

"It's a memory." Hiro supplied, when Tadashi made no move to speak.

Tadashi licked dry lips, opened his mouth, closed it and then opened it again, fighting to formulate his inner turmoil into something that might make logical sense. "I'm remembering burning in a fire? But I've never been trapped in a burning building. I've never even _seen_ a burning building."

"Not in this timeline." Hiro agreed.

"Are you trying to tell me that I couldn't come save you because I somehow managed to get myself trapped in a burning building?"

"You could say that." Hiro hedged, not really willing to go into further detail. Tadashi didn't need to know that Hiro had died trying to save him. Nor did he need to know that he'd stupidly killed himself by running into a burning building to save someone that didn't even need saving, leaving Hiro behind to fend for himself.

"Hiro." Tadashi picked up on Hiro's evasiveness and being as smart as he was, easily deduced the reason for it. "What aren't you telling me?"

"Nothing important." Hiro replied, biting his lip. "It doesn't matter because technically it didn't happen. Not yet, anyway. I changed it. I changed the entire timeline by going into the portal to save Abigail thus changing the chain of events that led to my death."

"Hiro…"

"It's really not important. I swear." Hiro insisted. "I know you don't have any reason to trust me and I'm not exactly giving you any good reasons now either but I know what I'm doing. I know what I'm fighting for and I don't regret it." Hiro took a deep breath, memories of fire, agony, grief and pain surging to the forefront despite his best efforts to deny them. It hurt. All of it had hurt him on so many levels but it didn't matter. All that pain had lead him to this moment bringing him one step closer to saving his brother and he'd do it again. In a heartbeat. "Any of it." He added, adding yet another level of conviction to his words.

"You don't regret setting yourself up to be the target of a military head hunt?" Tadashi asked, incredulous. "I know you generally don't think about the consequences of your actions but this takes the cake."

Oh yeah... the military. He'd forgotten about that. "Okay, so I may regret that." Hiro relented. "A little."

"Great." Tadashi's reply was heavily laced with sarcasm, the tone more than a little strange coming from him. "It's good to know you have at least a drop of common sense in that big impulsive brain of yours."

"It's a drop more than I had two years ago." Hiro retorted, teasingly, attempting to lighten the heavy mood that had settled between them. "At least there's hope for me. You on the other hand…"

Tadashi gave Hiro a look. "Finish that sentence and I'll take back what I just said about you possessing a drop of common sense."

"I wouldn't dream of finishing it." Hiro replied, giving Tadashi his best innocent look which consisted of wide, shimmering eyes, slightly parted lips and interlaced fingers locked firmly behind his back.

Tadashi sighed and shook his head. "Whatever am I going to do with you?" He muttered darkly under his breath as he turned walked away, heading towards Fred who was frantically waving at them from the back door that led into his mansion. He needed time, time to process everything Hiro had just told him and time to think. They both did...

"I don't know." Hiro whispered in reply. "You could always believe in me?" His words remained unacknowledged, snatched away by the breeze before they could even reach Tadashi's ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh wow… I actually managed a second chapter this week. I seriously didn't think it was possible but there you have it. Back to the story: "What did I do to break our relationship like this?" – Poor Tadashi. He is feeling so lost.


	29. Mi Porte D’entrée

**Mi Porte D'entrée**

"Welcome to mi porte d'entrée." Fred announced, the moment Tadashi and Hiro were within hearing distance. He waved at the large mansion before them. "That's French for my house."

Hiro groaned, face palming as he recalled a similar incident two years ago where Fred had announced that 'mi casa' was French for front door. He'd been wrong then and was still wrong now. It seemed that the person that had taught Fred French either had a malicious streak or one hell of a sense of humour. Or maybe it was a little bit of both. Either way, Fred should probably _not_ be attempting to speak it.

"Hey! Hey, Fred!" Hiro was pulled from his contemplation by the loud exclamation that escaped his brother's lips drawing his attention back to the scene before him. Fred had grabbed hold of Tadashi's arm and was now in the process of dragging him through the door, eager to show off the home he had managed to keep under wraps for so long. "Hold on a minute! We're leaving Hiro behind!" Tadashi's protest fell on deaf ears and he was quickly swept into Fred's excited hyperactive pace. Fred pulled and Tadashi stumbled, tripping over his own feet all while glancing back at Hiro in desperation.

It was a situation that Hiro was not about to help him out of. It was, after all, rather nice to see his older brother flustered for once. Now if only he'd brought a camera.

Wait…

He had his cell phone!

"Oh don't mind me!" Hiro whipped out his phone and promptly accessed the camera. Someone had to capture this moment for posterity, right? The sight of his brother tripping over himself in an attempt to both keep up with and stop Fred's hyperactive energy was truly a sight to behold. It was filled with gawky angles, graceless fumbling and an expression so filled with trepidation it almost made Hiro feel sorry for Tadashi. _Almost_ being the key operative term. "I'm perfectly capable of keeping up on my own!" Hiro ran after Fred, maniacal glee lighting up his features.

_Click._

Blackmail material!

_Click, click._

Blackmail material galore!

_Click, click, click, click, click, click, click._

Tadashi was in for one hell of a surprise! He had not yet been in Fred's house! If Tadashi thought that Hiro was going to remain outside and miss out on Tadashi's reaction to Fred's rather lavish and over the top home, he had another thing coming!

Tadashi fell silent, killing the rest of his protest before it even had a chance to be given voice. Hiro knew what he'd been about to say. Tadashi had probably been about to insist that there was no way he was letting Hiro out of his sight since leaving Hiro to his own devices was exactly what had gotten them into their current predicament. Hiro couldn't blame him for feeling that way but was relieved he'd managed to prevent Tadashi from airing that particular grievance by following his brother inside of his own free will. Okay, so his motives were not entirely pure. Capturing Tadashi's reaction to Fred's home was not the only reason he'd so easily complied with his brother's unspoken desire to have him near but he preferred not to dwell on that. Tadashi's reaction to Fred's home was far more interesting after all. The expression on Tadashi's face was simply _priceless_! The moment Fred managed to drag Tadashi through the large oak doors into the foyer, he gawked and when Tadashi gawked he _gawked!_ His jaw dropped, his eyes went wide and he was momentarily left speechless.

It was a really pleasing state of affairs even if Hiro did say so himself.

The foyer was huge! About three stories tall and three bedrooms wide huge and that was only the beginning. Gracing each side of the top half of the room were two staircases made of dark, intricately carved ebony. The two staircases met each other on a platform that sported the large ornate door that they had just entered through. Red velvet drapes hung on each side, trimmed with gold thread and leading down from the platform was yet another staircase, covered in a rather cliché red carpet. The walls and ceiling were subdivided into sections decorated with ornate wallpaper and framed by even more ebony. Portraits adorned the walls and mounted lights illuminated the space but the biggest crowning glory was the large crystal chandelier that hung suspended from the centre of the ceiling.

"Fred, this is your house?" Tadashi whispered in disbelief.

"Well, technically, it belongs to my parents." Fred replied, dragging Tadashi down the stairs, his grin every bit as gleeful as Hiro's. Seemed like Hiro was not the only one enjoying Tadashi's reaction "They're on a vacay on the family island. You know, we should totally go some time. Frolic."

"Family Island? Frolic?" Tadashi repeated, dumbfounded.

"Yeah and we should probably invite the rest of the gang too." Fred continued. He turned a corner and walked into the passage that led to his room, revealing a row of family portraits hanging on a wall covered in green paisley wallpaper. As expected, one in particular caught Tadashi's gaze. It featured a distinguished spectacled gentleman standing in the middle, his right hand resting on the shoulder of a seated red haired woman and his left on the shoulder of a young boy that was clearly Fred.

"Fred… I… how… what?" Tadashi continued, still searching for words to express his shock.

"Oh, that's a portrait of my parents and me." Fred released clarified, following the direction of Tadashi's gaze. He released Tadashi's hand and walked over to the painting. "It was painted when I was about twelve, I think. My mother tells me I was quite the brat. Apparently I didn't want to stand still so my parents were forced to take a photograph which the artist then used as reference."

"I see." Tadashi said even though he was clearly still reeling.

Hiro chuckled, turning to stick his tongue playfully out at Tadashi when Tadashi turned to glare at him. "How are you not even remotely surprised by all of this?" Tadashi demanded, waving an arm around in illustration.

Hiro quickly stifled his amusement in favor of settling his face into his most tried and tested innocent expression; the one he'd used to con all those bot fighters out of their money; before speaking. "I have no idea what you are referring to." Hiro said, looking calmly around. "I see nothing out of the ordinary here. Right Fred?"

Fred grinned and reached out to offer a high five which Hiro easily returned. "Right you are, little dude."

"But… but…"

"But what?" Hiro asked innocently.

"But Fred's house is HUGE!" Tadashi exclaimed, his mind finally offering him the words to express his complete disbelief. "We all thought he probably lived under a bridge somewhere. Okay maybe not all of us but that's what Gogo keeps saying. I personally figured an apartment somewhere would be more his speed but this? This is a mansion!"

"Yeah, so?" Hiro queried with a straight face. It wasn't often that Hiro managed to get the upper hand on his brother and he wasn't about to let the moment pass without squeezing every last bit of enjoyment out of it that he could. If that meant he had a bit of a mean streak then so be it.

"So?" Tadashi glanced at Fred before looking back at Hiro before looking back at Fred. "Have you _seen_ Fred?" Tadashi waved a hand to indicate Fred's attire. "This is the guy who just told us today that he recycles his _underwear!"_

Hiro winced internally taking care not to let the reaction show on his face. It seemed Fred had somehow managed to bring that topic up again. Boy was Hiro glad he hadn't been at the showcase to relive _that_ moment.

"You're the one that keeps telling me to never judge a book by its cover." Hiro pointed out throwing Tadashi's sage advice back at him. Payback really is a … Well you know.

"Yes but…" Tadashi fell silent, staring at Fred for a long moment before shaking his head and dropping his face into his right hand in exasperation. "Unbelievable." He muttered under his breath, the word clearly audible to Hiro's well trained ears.

Tadashi was right. This entire situation really was unbelievable. Fred's attire and demeanor were more than a little misleading. He neither acted nor dressed like a rich man's son. In fact, Hiro had been of the exact same opinion as Gogo after his first meeting with Fred but he wasn't about to tell Tadashi that. That would make things far too easy. Besides, the fun was still far from over. "If you think this is unbelievable wait until you see Fred's bedroom." Hiro retorted, his earlier amusement slipping back in tone.

Tadashi glanced up. "Are you trying to tell me it gets crazier than that Fred," He pointed at Fred, "being the son of some kind of millionaire?"

"Try billionaire." Hiro corrected, the grin that had slipped back onto his face growing wider with each exclamation of disbelief that escaped his brothers lips.

Tadashi's jaw dropped open yet again. "Billionaire?" He asked, looking to Fred for confirmation.

Fred shrugged. "I don't know how much money my parents have. I don't keep track." He informed Tadashi before turning to continue down the passageway. "The bedroom's this way."

Tadashi stared after him before turning to Hiro to repeat his question, this time mouthing the word silently. "Billionaire?" Hiro's grin was all the reply he needed before his brain finally caught up with the rest of Hiro's statement. "Wait. How on earth do you know what's in Fred's room?" He demanded on a hushed whisper, hanging a few steps back with Hiro so Fred wouldn't overhear their conversation. He wasn't really surprised that Fred hadn't picked up on that slip himself.

"I never said I know what's in Fred's room." Hiro whispered in reply, smoothly transitioning back into his innocent act.

"Drop the act." Tadashi growled, narrowing his eyes.

"What act?" Hiro asked, pumping up the lost kitten look. It was an art form. One he was really good at and he'd be damned if it didn't work on his brother, at least once in his life.

"This act." Tadashi pointed at Hiro's wide eyes. "You've been acting suspicious for a while now. You've clearly upped your game. First you refuse to go to school, then you get involved in bot fights and now you're hacking government sites, messing with government experiments and spying on my friends."

A flash of hurt coursed through Hiro, effectively killing both his amusement and the game. Tadashi didn't believe him. He didn't believe that Hiro knew what he knew because he has somehow traveled through time and had come up with an alternate more believable explanation all on his own. One that painted Hiro in an unsavory light. Tadashi thought he'd obtained the information he had through hacking.

Go figure.

A part of Hiro was starting to wonder why he even bothered with the truth but another part, the stronger part that had always looked up to his brother for his honesty continued to insist that it was the right thing to do. "Our friends." Hiro corrected him watching the flash of surprise that coursed over his brother's features. Not giving Tadashi a chance to protest, he continued. "You may not believe me, and they may not remember me but I remember and I refuse to believe my experiences mean nothing in the greater scheme of things. After you died, I befriended them. They are the reason I managed to survive without you and we became quite close. We laughed together, we cried together and we even bled together. We built a legacy and even though it has all been undone I remember and as long as I remember a part of it will always exist. I did it once and I can do it again and nothing you can say will change that."

Determination.

The determination that coursed through Hiro with his words grew ever larger with every statement he made and with it brought forth a realization Hiro had been missing all along. He'd been doing it all wrong. They were a team. Gogo, Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Fred, Baymax and… him. Together they had accomplished far more than any of them would have ever managed to accomplish alone and he'd stupidly left them out when it counted the most. How could he have been so _stupid?!_

"After I died?" Tadashi's question pulled Hiro back into the present turning his attention to more current problems. "I thought we died together."

Oh no.

No no, no no, no no no!

Stupid brain. Stupid mouth. Stupid, stupid broken filter! Always betraying him in the worst possible way.

Hiro licked suddenly dry lips, glancing up with wide eyes, this time inadvertently looking more like a deer caught in headlights than a lost kitten. "We did." Hiro whispered hoarsely, the words rough and hoarse. "The second time."

"But not the first." Tadashi quickly caught onto what Hiro had left unsaid.

Hiro dropped his gaze and shook his head.

"Look at me."

Hiro made no move to obey.

"Hiro, look at me." Tadashi repeated, his voice brimming with the calm authority he exerted when parenting Hiro right after he caught him getting up to mischief.

Hiro looked up.

"Did we die together the second time because you were trying to save me from dying?" Tadashi asked, the question even and controlled. Hiro licked his lips and tried to look away but Tadashi was having none of that. "Hiro, answer."

Hiro bit his lip, licking away the traces of blood that escaped it when he bit too hard before speaking. "I tried." He paused, sniffed and wiped his nose on the sleeve of his blue hoodie, fighting back the tears his feelings of failure were once again waking up within him. "I tried so hard to save you." Sniff, sniff. His lip began to tremble. "I couldn't believe I'd been given a second chance and thought I was going crazy so it took me a while to actually put a plan into play but I tried. I did everything I could and I even managed to delay it but… but in the end… I… I…"

Warmth. Soldered circuits. Baked Goods.

Hiro was suddenly cradled in a familiar embrace and surrounded by a familiar scent. Tadashi had grabbed hold of him and wrapped him up in his arms, silently offering comfort and support and even though Hiro knew Tadashi was still struggling to believe him it meant the world to him. Tadashi was there, warm and alive and for once precious moment all was right with the world.

"Alright, bonehead." Tadashi withdrew, reaching out to playfully ruffle Hiro's hair. "Let's go see what Fred's room has in store for me then." And with that the game was back on.

Grin back in place, Hiro reached out, grabbed hold of Tadashi's hand and pulled him down the rest of the passageway and straight into Fred's bedroom. He then released him and took a few steps back in anticipation of the big reveal. Tadashi raised a questioning eyebrow at Hiro before turning his focus to Fred's room.

Hiro held his breath in anticipation.

Tadashi casually took in the large TV set into the wall, the desk and the large white couch.

Wait for it.

He then calmly took in the bookshelves filled with comic books, the marvel action figures and the life size models of dragons, suits of armor and other comic book monsters.

Wait for it.

Tadashi didn't even pause to react to the large floating blue blob suspended from Fred's ceiling a smug look beginning to slip onto his face as he sensed looming victory. He wasn't going to give Hiro the satisfaction of another dumbfounded reaction. Except for its size and the sheer amount of comic book paraphernalia that filled it, Fred's room was exactly what he'd expected.

Almost there…

Nearing the end of his scan of the room, Tadashi was was just about to turn back to Hiro with a satisfied victorious smirk on his lips when he finally spotted it. "Fred, what on earth is that?" Tadashi demanded.

Bingo!

He turned to face Fred, pointing at the large painting that hung off of Fred's bedroom wall. In it a large muscular barbarian sat seated atop a ferocious white tiger. The warrior held a spear in his left hand and sported large dragon like wings. The tiger was painted with its fangs bared, ready to attack at a moment's notice but the most disturbing part of it all was the fact that the warrior bore Fred's face.

Priceless. The sheer disbelief on Tadashi's face was completely priceless.

"What?" Fred turned to face Tadashi looking up at the painting before casually offering a completely unhelpful reply. "Oh, that. That's a painting. Shows off my best side don't you think?" He posed reaching up to rest a hand under his chin. "In it I'm all like roar," He raised his fingers and wiggled them, "and bam." He shifted into a fighting pose, "and shluk." Fred pretended to spear something before relaxing. "It's awesome, right?!"

Fred's oblivious reaction was even better only serving to add to Tadashi's incredulity. This was it. The entertainment Hiro had been waiting for and it was more than worth the wait.

Tadashi groaned and shook his head. "Not exactly." He looked back up at the painting once more running a hand absently through his hair and down his neck as he tried to process the sight before him. "That's probably got to be weirdest thing I've ever seen."

That's probably got to be weirdest thing I've ever seen.

And with that, the fun was over.

Hiro thought Tadashi's reaction was going to be amusing. He'd been anticipating for this moment, so eager to see his brothers reaction to the painting that he'd completely disregarded the potential impact reliving the moment in such a different manner would have on his own state of mind. It was harmless after all, right? Nothing drastic had happened here. No battles, no death and no pain only…

_If I wasn't just attacked by a guy in a kabuki mask, I think this would be the weirdest thing I've seen today._

Tadashi's words woke an echo in Hiro's mind, bringing his own stupidity back to the forefront of his mind. He missed them. Hiro missed his friends and the realization that he probably should have included them in this current rescue mission was something he didn't want to dwell on too deeply. Not when there wasn't anything he could do about it. Only he couldn't escape it. Not here, not in the place where Big Hero 6 had been born.

_Actually, if we are going to catch this guy, I need to upgrade all of you._

_Upgrade who, now?_

_Those who suffer a loss require support from friends and loved ones._

_Okay, I like where this is heading!_

_We can't go against that guy! We're nerds!_

_Hiro, we want to help, but we're just us._

_No. You can be way more._

_Tadashi Hamada was our best friend. We're in._

_Can you feel it? You guys, do you feel this? Our origin story begins. We're gonna be superheroes!_

How could he have been so stupid?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this chapter came out alright. I really hate writing descriptions of the surroundings but it was rather important in this chapter. I wanted the entire chapter to be light hearted but it clearly had other ideas. The light hearted moments were fun while they lasted though. Tadashi is in some serious shock here XD XD XD. The flu I have been trying to avoid finally took me down this week. It sucked but I am starting to feel better now. YAY for ginger, honey and lemon drink though I seriously have had enough of the stuff to last me a while now. Hope I was missed… even if it's just a little ;)


	30. A New Angle

**A New Angle**

"Nothing!" Hiro exclaimed throwing his hands up in frustration. He was still in Fred's room staring angrily at the blank notebook on the table. He'd just spent most of the morning trying to come up with a plan to get out of the mess he had made of his life thus far which is really saying something because this isn't the first time he'd done something really stupid. To say that he was having absolutely no luck in that department would be a gross understatement. "No ideas!" He thumped his head on the table. "Useless," Thump, "empty," thump, "brain!" Thump.

"My offer still stands, you know." Fred piped up, not even lifting his gaze as he turned a page. Fred was sprawled on his white couch, nose buried in one of his many comic books. "I can get Heathcliff to warm up the helicopter and we can be on our way to my family island within the hour with no one the wiser."

"This isn't come kind of holiday or comic book adventure." Hiro said lifting his head to look at Fred. "This is the rest of my life we're talking about here. I can't just vanish and spend it wandering around your family island."

"Why not? It's got sunshine, sea and sand. Oh and privacy, lots and lots of privacy. What more could you want?" Fred put down his comic book with a thoughtful expression on his face. "Oh wait, never mind. There are no illegal bot fights there. You'd probably be bored. Let's see. Plan B. Oh, I know. You could always invent a serum to make you invisible. Then you could go wherever you wanted without worrying about being caught! You know," He leapt up and started to bounce around in excitement. "…because no one can _see_ you. Invisible sandwiches would be way cooler but how awesome would it be to be invisible? Just think of all the possibilities."

Oh no.

Hiro face palmed, the motion reminiscent of how Tadashi did it. It would appear that Fred was even more obsessed with those invisible sandwiches than anyone realised. "Fred, I hate to break it to you but that's not science."

"But it could be." Fred lifted a finger into the air. "Every time I asked Honey to develop a formula that could turn me into a fire breathing lizard at will, she said it's 'not science'." Fred threw in a couple of air quotes, "But then Tadashi told me you offered to build me a suit that can do exactly that. It's not exactly a chemical formula but the end result is the same. It's science even though she said it's not. It just took a different genius to come up with it so why not invisible sandwiches? Imagine eating a sandwich," Fred pretended to bite into a sandwich, "but everyone just thinks you're crazy."

It's not exactly a chemical formula but the end result is the same.

Hiro zoned out ignoring the rest of Fred's rant on favor of reassessing those key words that had somehow managed to find their way past the Otaku's lips. He had to give it to him. Fred made a really good point. Even though it hadn't been possible to use chemistry to turn him into a fire breathing lizard, the same end result had been achieved by combining that very chemistry he'd been trying to rely on with robotics. All it had required was a new angle.

_Look for a new angle._

He'd done it before. Hiro had solved many of the problems thrown at him by simply following Tadashi's advice and looking at them differently. Maybe the same logic could be applied to his current predicament as well? Maybe all he had to do was change his perspective on the situation in order to find a way out without ruining the rest of his own or Tadashi's life. It was a good concept… in theory. Unfortunately, it was not as simple to put into practice. Not when Hiro didn't even knew where to begin.

_Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz._

The sound of his cell phone buzzing pulled Hiro out of this thoughts and he quickly scanned the room looking for it. He'd forgotten to take it off silent after his presentation. Not surprising really, seeing as he had been otherwise occupied.

_Buzz. Buzz buzz buzz._

Spotting the vibrating device on Fred's lamp stand, he rushed across the room to snatch it up fearing that the caller may be Tadashi or Aunt Cass calling him to tell him something had gone wrong. Tadashi had gone home to try smooth things over with Aunt Cass, leaving Hiro behind to worry about all the potential danger that Tadashi could still find himself in. He wasn't yet certain, after all, that his plan to keep Tadashi alive in this timeline had been successful.

_Caller ID: Unknown_

Odd. Hiro didn't usually get phone calls from unknown numbers. He lifted the phone to his ear and pressed the answer button without thinking. "Is this Hiro Hamada?" Hiro's blood ran cold. He recognized the voice that came through the speaker the moment the call connected and he wasn't ready. He wasn't ready to face the consequences of his actions but it would appear life had other plans for him. "Alistair Krei." Hiro's greeting came out cold.

"I see you've heard of me." Krei kept his tone professional, completely ignoring Hiro's rather chilly greeting.

"Kind of difficult not to…" Hiro paused, memories of Krei's stern features slipping into mind. He didn't like the man. He hadn't liked him the first time he met him, nor the time he'd rescued him. And even though their original theory that Yokai was Krei had been wrong, Hiro had continued to dislike him. It was, after all, Krei's dubious ethics that had started the downward spiral that had led to Callaghan's mental break. The fact that Tadashi didn't appear to like the man either only added fuel to the fire. "…considering."

"I see." Krei's response was short and sharp. "That makes things easier. I wish to speak with you."

"Regarding what?" Hiro asked suspiciously, his heart beginning to race in his chest.

"Regarding Project Silent Sparrow."

Hiro's heart jumped, skipped a beat and started up again stirring an ache deep within his chest. This was exactly what he was afraid of. "I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Maybe you should have considered that before you meddled with an experiment you had no right to even knowing about, let alone touch." Krei's response was cold. "We need to discuss the repercussions of your actions before things get out of hand and people get hurt." The underlying threat in his words couldn't be more abundantly clear.

Hiro bit his lip, swallowing back the self-recrimination that threatened to overwhelm him. Krei and Tadashi were both right. He hadn't really thought his actions through. The rather easy manner in which the initial timeline of events had been resolved had led him to overlook the potential repercussions of his actions in this new revised timeline and he had no one else to blame but himself. It was about time he accepted that and faced the consequences of his actions. "Alright." Hiro glanced at Fred, noting that he was still buried in his comics. "Where and when?"

"Two o'clock. Outside the SFIT showcase building."

The showcase building. Why did it always come back to the SFIT showcase building? It seemed that the harder he fought to get away from it, the harder fate worked to pull him back. To be honest he wasn't even surprised anymore. He'd actually been kind of expecting it. "Alright." Hiro agreed reluctantly, every fiber of his being screaming that he was making a mistake but as long as there was even the slimmest chance that this might save Tadashi's life, it was a mistake he was willing to make. "I'll be there." He pulled the phone abruptly away from his ear and hung up, the action a rather petty way of ending the conversation on his own terms.

And so it begins.

Tossing the phone back onto the table he turned and headed straight towards Fred, somehow managing to use his small stature to loom over the Otaku just enough to get his attention. "I'm going out." He informed Fred. "If Tadashi gets back before I do, tell him I'll be right back."

"Going out?" Fred blinked up at him in confusion. "But I thought you were supposed to remain in hiding. You know, because the military is out to get you?" Fred dropped his comic book and leaped to his feet. "If you go out now they're bound to find you, capture you and perform illegal experiments on you. Maybe turn you into a mindless, remote controlled zombie or something."

"No one is out to get me." Hiro countered calmly, using all his practiced guile to lie smoothly. Fred, at least, was still someone he could deceive.

"But…"

"It was all a misunderstanding. I'm just going out to clear it all up." Hiro picked up the blue hoodie he had draped over one of Fred's chairs, moving to slip into it. "I shouldn't be gone long."

Fred's face fell. "So we're not going to go on an adventure? I want to go on an adventure. Fight some villains," Fred moved into a fighting pose, "and conquer evil! How sublime would that be? I could be a Hero!" A glimmer of hope remained despite the disappointment etched onto Fred's features. "Especially if you build me that fire breathing lizard suit you promised Tadashi you'd make for me. Just imagine how awesome that would be! You could wear your cool purple suit and fly around on Baymax and I could bounce around breathing fire. We could be San Fransokyo's top crime fighting duo and this could be our origin story."

It hurt.

The picture Fred was painting stung Hiro to the core. Especially since Fred was not all that far off with his dream. They'd done exactly that. Once. And it really had been every bit as awesome as Fred was making it out to be. Only Hiro had lost it all and the foolish decisions he'd made in his desperation to save Tadashi had turned it into just that, a dream. Hiro couldn't rebuild Big Hero 6. Not now that he had revealed his identity to the world at large by wearing his suit during his showcase presentation and not without Baymax. "I'm sorry Fred. But we can't be heroes. Not in this lifetime." Hiro said as he turned and began to head towards the door.

"I guess you're right." Fred flopped back down onto the couch, the last glimmer of hope he'd been clinging to effectively gone. "I get it, man. Even though it may not seem like it, I know life can't be like my comic books. I just thought it would be really cool if… you know… sometimes life just needs…"

_Sometimes life just needs…_

_Hope._

_Justice._

_Someone to help._

Hiro understood exactly what Fred was trying to say only there was nothing he could do about it. His mistakes had already been made and it was now time to pay the piper.

"Never mind." Fred continued, changing the subject without completing his sentiment. "Where are you off to little dude? In case something, you know, happens?"

Hiro turned to glance at Fred and was momentarily frozen in indecision. Fred's eyes were filled with concern and it was more than apparent that he only had Hiro's best interests in mind. He shouldn't tell him. It was better if Fred didn't know where he was going because then he wouldn't be able to tell Tadashi and what Tadashi didn't know couldn't hurt him only that wasn't quite right. That logic hadn't worked before and Hiro doubted it was about to start working now. "I'm going to SFIT." Hiro chose to tell the truth.

"Okay." Fred nodded and flopped back onto his couch picking up his comic book once more. "If you're not back by four I'm telling Tadashi where you've gone. Even if he's not back yet and I have to call him to do so."

Message understood. Loud and clear.

A wave of relief coursed through Hiro. Fred was basically giving him time; time to do what he had to in order to fix the mess he had made of everything before getting Tadashi involved in it once more and Hiro didn't even know how to begin to thank him. "I'll make sure the suit can breathe lots of fire." Hiro said, a grateful grin spread across his features.

"And bouce. Don't forget to make it bounce really high, like super jump high!" Fred retorted, mirroring Hiro's with an insane one of his own. "I want to be able to spin around and create fire rings in the air. How cool would that look? I'd be a super hero and a circus performer all in one!"

"Okay, okay. I get it." Hiro raised his hands in pretend defeat, still beaming like a maniac. "I'll make sure you can also bounce really high."

"Oh and…"

"That's enough, Fred." Hiro cut him off before he could get too carried away. "One thing at a time. Let's see if we can manage to include everything you currently want and then we can talk modifications, okay?"

"Cool, man." Fred nodded. "We'll start with fire breath and super bounce and then we can see what else we can get it to do." Fred's eyes positively gleamed in excitement.

Hiro nodded. "We have a plan in place then. I'll start building it as soon as I get back." _That is… if I get back at all._ Hiro couldn't help the stray thought that filtered through his mind, fearing deep down inside that he may in fact be walking straight into a trap. It was a fact that he didn't want to dwell on too deeply or share with Fred.

"Remember, if you're not back by four o'clock, I'm going to sic Tadashi on you, little dude." Fred repeated, revealing a facet of his personality that Hiro was already intimately acquainted with. Fred was a lot more perceptive than people gave him credit for.

"I get it. I have until four o'clock." Hiro confirmed before finally managing to exit Fred's room.


	31. Rendezvous

**Rendezvous**

"Mr. Hamada." Alistair Krei was waiting for Hiro outside of the showcase building when he arrived. He wore his trademark pinstripe blue suit, white dress shirt and was polished to the nines. He did not look like a man on the run from the military and managed to look very out of place on campus where he found himself surrounded by students in casual attire that mostly consisted of jeans and t-shirts.

Hiro on the other hand managed the exact opposite. He easily fit into the environment, wearing casual khaki shorts, t-shirt and hoodie but it was his messy hair and the shadows beneath his eyes that really did the job. If one didn't know better one could almost imagine he was a student, exhausted from studying for finals or from working on projects. "Alistair Krei." Hiro's greeting was every bit as short and cold as the greeting he was on the receiving end of.

"I was just about to leave." Alistair glanced at the rather expensive watch attached to his wrist. "You're fifteen minutes late."

"Yeah well, you didn't exactly give me a lot of warning." Hiro pointed out, running up the stairs to arrive breathless at Alistair's side. The two of them were standing in front of the glass doors that led into the showcase building. "I came as quickly as I could."

"I guess allowances will need to be made." Alistair relented turning to walk towards the glass doors. Hiro stared after Krei in fear, his levels of trepidation growing with each step that Alistair took. He didn't want to go back there, back into the location that had managed to take his brother from him not once but twice but fate it seemed had other ideas. Alistair pushed the door open and turned to face Hiro once more, raising an eyebrow in question. "You coming?"

Hiro licked dry lips, the anxiety deep in his gut a far too familiar sensation. "Can't we… uh… go somewhere else?"

Alistair Krei's other eyebrow joined the first. "I don't have an office at SFIT and am not exactly welcome in the staff rooms. School policies and all. I didn't manage to get a proper look at all the experiments on display here and figured I'd meet up with you here and kill two birds with one stone. So if it's not too much trouble I would really like to get this meeting started. The sooner we start, the sooner you can leave." Alistair pointedly held the door open for Hiro.

The sooner we start, the sooner you can leave.

Hiro only had until four before Fred called in the cavalry and he'd already lost fifteen minutes by arriving late. He really didn't have the time to nit-pick the location. Taking a deep shaky breath he stepped forward through the glass door, sparing a moment to glance back at the students casually milling about in front of the building. A few of them were pointedly staring at him, clearly talking about him while others were trying to be more subtle about it, pretending not to be looking all while casting glances in their direction.

Well at least there were enough witnesses around to report his last known location.

Hiro pushed the rather morbid thought away and closed the glass door turning to follow Krei into the dimly lit showcase building. Alistair paused to flick on a switch thus illuminating the room that still held all the experiments before stepping inside. "Marvelous. This entire concept is absolutely ingenious. This showcase really does manage to bring together some of the brightest young minds out there. I've discovered several of my employees here." Alistair ran a hand over one of the experiments.

Hiro remained silent, waiting for Krei to get to the point.

"I saw some really remarkable experiments here this year but none quite as remarkable as yours." Krei turned to face Hiro. "How did you manage to stabilize the portal enough to both enter and exit?"

"I re-evaluated the equations related to the containment field and adjusted some of the parameters that were entered. Your equations assumed a linear time flow. I adjusted them to cater for the possibility of a spiral structure."

"Ingenious. Absolutely ingenious." Krei mused, absently adjusting the sleeves of his suit. "And you managed to get it working in how long?"

"Two months."

"Extraordinary. I want you at Krei Tech. You can work any anything you like. I'll pay you a decent salary and even give you your own lab space. If you can manage to fix that project in a mere two months with your limited budget just imagine what you could create if you were given more time and all the materials you could possibly need."

Too easy.

This entire meeting was too easy. It was not going at all the way Hiro had feared it would. He'd come here expecting to be interrogated about the fact that he had somehow both found and meddled with a government experiment that was supposed to be a secret and instead he was being offered a job. "But what about Project Silent Sparrow? Isn't it a military experiment? Am I not in trouble for revealing government secrets to the general public?"

"Well there is that." Krei adjusted the sleeves of his suit once again, the motion more an ingrained habit than a necessity. "We've come up with a rather clean solution to that little problem."

And there it was… the catch.

"What solution?" Hiro asked suspiciously.

"You're going to have an interview with the press. In it you're going to tell everyone that you were mistaken about the origins of that experiment. You're going to tell everyone that you wrongly assumed it was a government experiment after seeing how advanced it was but after further investigation you've realized that it was in fact all the brain child of one man. This scientist performed illicit experiments without informing the general scientific community at large and abandoned it after losing his daughter in the portal."

Robert Callaghan!

Alistair Krei planned to make Professor Robert Callaghan into a scapegoat to hide both his and the military's involvement with Project Silent Sparrow. And the worst thing was, Hiro hadn't even seen it coming. "I happen to have evidence to the contrary." Hiro retorted, taking a cautious step back.

"Which is the reason we're having this meeting to begin with." Alistair said, calmly walking over to another experiment. "We need you to destroy any and all such evidence."

"And if I refuse?" He took another step towards the door, desperately hoping to get away before things got out of hand. Why? Why did everything he touched always have to turn into a big mess? Why was Krei every bit as conniving as Callaghan had always claimed? Why had Hiro not considered the repercussions of revealing a military experiment to the world before his showcase presentation and most importantly of all why had he even come here to begin with?

"Let's just say that's not exactly an option." Alistair turned to face Hiro once more, his pale blue eyes ice cold.

And once again, he found himself between a rock and a hard place. Hiro did not miss the implied threat that calmly informed him he was damned no matter which course of action he chose to take. He could either place all the blame on Callaghan, who although not entirely innocent, was not the real culprit here or risk his own life and that of those he loved to preserve both justice and the truth. Neither choice was going to end well. And so he decided to go with the only choice both he and Tadashi could live or perhaps die with. "I'm sorry Mr. Krei but I can't do…"

"So this is where you've been hiding, Alistair." A dark all too familiar voice cut Hiro off before he could finish delivering his refusal to co-operate with Krei's insidious plan. "I see you're already scurrying around like the rat that you are." Professor Callaghan stepped out of the shadows, the fluorescent lights reflecting off of the silver in his hair and in his hand. "Looking for a way out of the mess young Mr. Hamada seems to have thrown us both into and all behind my back."

A gun!

The silver in Professor Robert Callaghan's hand was a gun!

Callaghan casually took a few more steps forward before halting just out of both Krei's and Hiro's reach. He directed a cold dismissive glance at both of them before continuing. "Now I wonder what the two of you could possibly be scheming. Let's see." He thoughtfully raised the fingers of his free hand to his chin. "You're probably trying to find a way to pin this entire thing on me."

Callaghan was right. He always had been right. Krei really was an unscrupulous man, interested only in saving his own skin. He couldn't be trusted with anything but that did not justify Callaghan's actions. Not then and not now. Hiro wearily raised his arms in surrender, fear beating a rapid rhythm in his chest. One mistake… all it would take was one mistake and it would all be over.

"Robert, let's not be too hasty." Krei raised his arms up as well, every bit as focused on the gun in Callaghan's hand as Hiro was. A gun was, after all, kind of difficult to ignore. "You have the wrong idea."

"Do I?" Callaghan cocked the gun and released the safety with a click, slipping his free hand into the pocket of the black coat he was wearing. "Somehow I sincerely doubt that. You forget. I know you. There is no way you're going to take the fall for this when there is such a convenient escape route so readily available to you. It is, after all, _my_ daughter that has just been rather publicly rescued from the portal. Based on the current evidence in play, it wouldn't be too hard to deny both your involvement and that of the military. All it would take is a statement from young Mr. Hamada stating that he had mistakenly assumed the government was involved thus ensuring your own involvement never sees the light of day."

Damn it. Callaghan really did know Alistair Krei. Hiro's mind raced, desperately seeking a way out of this situation only to come up blank.

Think. Think Hamada. Think.

"Robert, I know how you feel about me but surely you do not think I would stoop so low as to…"

"That is exactly what I think." Callaghan cut Krei off before the man could even finish speaking. "I trusted you once and you played me for a fool. You ignored sound science, cut corners and took my daughter from me. I will not let do it again. I'll die before I let you stain me or my daughter again."

Think.

There has to be a way to diffuse the volatile situation. There just has to be.

Callaghan was once again dangling on the precipice of insanity and every word Krei said was only making the entire situation worse. "Professor Callaghan!" Hiro interjected, desperate to turn the tide of the conversation. "I gave you your daughter back. I did everything in my power to fix the portal and get her out. If we put our minds together I'm sure we can find a way out of this situation and…"

"There's no way out!" Callaghan waved the gun at Hiro, a gleam of madness flickering in his eyes. "There never was. I was doomed the day I agreed to participate in that damned experiment. I was always going to do down for the sin I committed. It was only a question of time. But if I'm going down for this, I'm sure as hell going to take Krei with me." He turned the gun back onto Krei. "How about it? How about we all go down together? Right here, right now? In a flaming blaze of glory." He pulled a lighter out of his pocket and flicked it on, its tiny pale yellow flame appearing to dance in the air just above his hand.

That is when Hiro noticed it. The chemicals pouring out of one of the experiments located just behind Callaghan.

Oh no!

Ignoring the gun still trained pointed in their direction, Hiro whirled desperately around running his eyes over the various experiments that surrounded them. There, another one, and another, and another. All in all, Hiro managed to spot five sabotaged experiments all gathered in a ring around them.

No! No, no, no, no, NOOOO!

Hiro finished his circle and faced Callaghan once more, meeting the knowing gleam in the mad professor's eyes. He knew. Callaghan realized Hiro had figured out his plan and he didn't care because there was nothing Hiro could do to stop him.

Despair welled up within him, threatening to suffocate him from within but Hiro couldn't let it win. Not while he still had breath in his body. He'd failed. All of his efforts to prevent this very event appeared to have faded into nothing but like Callaghan, he too wasn't going to go down quietly. He was going to fight, with every last fiber of his being and even if he failed, he'd gladly go down knowing that at least part of his plan had been a success. He had managed to keep Tadashi away.

"Hiro!"

The familiar exclamation turned Hiro's blood ice cold, dread and anguish coursing through his veins. It couldn't be. I wasn't four o' clock yet. Tadashi couldn't be…

Hiro turned to face the showcase building's entrance, spotting all too familiar neatly trimmed black hair, broad shoulders and concerned brown eyes. He was. Tadashi had just casually walked into the showcase building at the worst possible moment and…

"Tadashi! No!" Hiro leaped into motion, arm desperately outstretched as he ran forward, hoping to prevent the inevitable. Hiro was not the only one to react to Tadashi's exclamation. Professor Callaghan had heard it too, twisting around to point his gun at the new perceived threat.

BANG!

The sound of the gun discharging echoed through the room.

He fell.

Tumbling to the ground to land in a growing pool of his own blood.

"Hiro! No!" An anguished cry escaped Tadashi's lips and he ran to his brother's side, desperately sweeping Hiro's frail broken body into his arms. "Don't die on me! Don't you dare die on me!"

"Robert! No! Think about what you're doing!" Alistair Krei's voice faded away into the background as the grief on Tadashi's face came into focus.

"Dashi." He could taste it. Hot, wet and metallic. "What…" Heavy. His chest was heavy and it was growing increasingly difficult to breathe. Why was it so difficult to breath? "What… doing here?" He forced the words out, the need to know that answer more important than anything else. Why? Why was Tadashi there when Fred had all but promised him that he wouldn't call his brother until four o'clock?

"I'm looking for you, bonehead." Tadashi replied his voice thick with tears. He moved to position Hiro's hand on his chest. "Just hold it there, okay? We'll get you out of here and to a hospital. They'll fix you right up. Just don't die on me."

"'s not…" Hiro swallowed, fighting to keep the bitter salty taste of his own blood out of his mouth.  
"four… 'clock yet."

"It's okay, Hiro. I've got you." Tadashi carefully lifted Hiro up, pressing Hiro's slim form against his chest as he regained his feet. "I've got you. We'll get out of here and then everything's going to be okay." Burning, Tadashi's eyes were burning but it was not his conviction that Hiro saw reflected in those brown orbs. It was fire, orange flames, dancing and taunting him with their presence.

The showcase building was burning.

"Why?" Hiro tried again before hissing in pain, his mind finally catching up to his body. It hurt. He chest was a bundle of agony and pain and every breath he took only made it worse but he couldn't fall silent. He needed answers, needed to know exactly what it was he'd done wrong. "Why… looking for me?"

"I heard some people talking." Tadashi replied, heading rapidly towards the door. "I'd come here to pick a few things up and then heard some people say they had spotted you on campus. They were wondering why you were meeting Alistair Krei in the showcase building."

A thread of relief eased a small portion of the agony within. It wasn't Fred. Fred hadn't betrayed him by calling his brother before the allotted time. Telling him where he was going had not been a mistake. The mistake Hiro had actually made was assuming that fate might actually be on his side for once.

"I thought it was just some ridiculous rumor that someone concocted just to get the gossip mill going but thought it might be worth investigating." Tadashi continued, his calm conversational tone clearly meant to keep Hiro calm but he could feel it. Hiro could feel the tension in his brother's body and hear the emerging threads of grief in his voice. "You've been known to cause trouble, after all, and rarely do what you're supposed to."

Heat.

The heat was growing at an incredible pace. He was burning. His skin, his eyes and the very air that he breathed. The world was burning and he could taste it now, the ash in the air.

"And it's a good thing I came." Tadashi was still speaking. "Callaghan…" Tadashi chocked on the word, taking a deep breath to gather himself before speaking again. "Why did Callaghan have a gun?" The betrayal he felt as he said those words was clearly etched onto his features. He hadn't expected it, hadn't imagined that the man he revered so much could…

CRACK!

A bright orange pillar fell to the ground, the flames taunting Hiro as they flickered through the air. No escape. There would be no escape. Not for him and not for Tadashi.

Tadashi stumbled to a halt, fear beginning to spread onto his features. "Go." Hiro chocked out, reaching out to cup Tadashi's cheek with a bloody hand. "Leave me and… go."

Tadashi shook his head, the fear in his eyes shifting just long enough to reveal thee stubborn determination Hiro knew lay beneath it. "I'm not leaving you." Tadashi chocked out, pressing Hiro more firmly into his chest. "We're making it out together." Tadashi buried his forehead in Hiro's hair, warm salty tears falling onto Hiro's face. "I'll find it. It's here. All I have to do is look for another angle."

"It's…" Hiro's hand slid down Tadashi's face, leaving a trail of red on his cheek. "… too late."

"No! It's not. I'm going to figure this all out. I'll find a way to get us both out of here and… and…" Tadashi spun around, looking, searching, refusing to give up until the very last moment but he was wrong. It was too late. Hiro could already feel it. The strange chill that settled into his bones, the far too familiar wave of darkness that continued to creep closer and the promise… the promise of relief from the pain that continued to course through every nerve in his body.

"Dashi…" He used his remaining strength to reach out and cling to the soft wool of Tadashi's Cardigan. "I am…" Rattle, cough, rattle. "Satis…" Breathe damnit… just a few more breathes and then he could finally let go. "…fied with my…" One more… just one more word, "…care." And with those last broken words, Hiro's world went black.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that, my dear readers, is how you break your brother's heart. Assuming you are Hiro and your brother is Tadashi, of course. Congratulations to everyone that realized this was coming.


	32. Judgement

**Judgement**

_Fate._

_Inescapable. Inevitable. And never changing._

_Hiro was once again lost in a vast landscape of familiar color and hue, cool indigo merging with brilliant fusia and saguaro blossom. Pale pearl shifted subtly into brilliant white, twisting through shades of violet and lapis and azure reminding him of the sky, of flying and of freedom. It was all familiar, holding memories of pain, hope and never ending cycles of life, death, possibilities and more. It was everything and nothing and he was but a speck of dust thrown about by the ocean of destiny, drifting, weightless, small, inconsequential and alone…_

_Wait…_

_No._

_That wasn't right._

_He wasn't alone!_

_He could feel it. A presence permeating the air, filling every fiber of his being with its sheer power and existence, growing ever larger with each moment that passed him by. The cool colors began to fade, twist and change, grow brighter and more luminescent to reveal a bright flash of crimson from the corner of his eye._

_Baymax?_

_No. The presence was not Baymax. Suddenly filled with unease, he twisted to face the presence, his own ethereal existence seeming to fade ever more into the background in the face the blazing splendor that met his gaze._

_The figure before him was humanoid in nature, standing what had to be at least two thousand feet tall and like Baymax, was clad, head to toe in brilliant red armor. The red was broken with black and white, intricate designs scrawled across his chest, pelvis, hand and face, the most intricate of which was located on the thumb of his right hand. It was breath taking, awe inspiring and terrifying all at once and Hiro's brain immediately attempted to figure out what the armor could possibly be made of. He could, after all, incorporate it into his own designs if he ever made his way back to the real world and…_

_"Hiro Hamada."_

_Hiro's wandering thoughts were abruptly cut short by the booming voice that seemed to come from both everywhere and nowhere. How…_

_"The earth has been judged and found lacking." The boom continued, every atom in Hiro's body vibrating in tune with the timber of what could only be the armored figures voice. "Twice you have been granted a chance to change destiny. Twice you have failed. My patience runs short. You will be granted one more chance. Do not fail me again. Earth's very existence hangs on the next set of choices you make." The mammoth figure raised his right arm up almost seeming to give Hiro a thumbs up in encouragement but there was far more to the movement than that. Far more than Hiro's shell shocked mind could even begin to comprehend as he fought to process the sheer enormity of the burden that had so casually just been placed onto his small inadequate shoulders._

_The intricate design on the figure's thumb began to glow and the portal reacted, its energy pulsing, swirling and growing, latching onto Hiro and slowly beginning to draw him away._

_Who?_

_Who was this monumental figure before him and what power did he hold?_

_Why?_

_Why was Hiro there, his very presence less than the single speck of dust he imagined he was mere moments earlier?_

_But most importantly of all how?_

_How was he supposed to change the very course of the earth's existence when he was but one person? Only sixteen with absolutely no idea what it was he was meant to be fixing let along how to go about fixing it in the first place! When the only thing he knew was h…_

_WAIT! THE EARTH WAS GOING TO BE DESTROYED?!_

_"Wait!" The cry that escaped him was desperate, there and gone before he even knew it. The large space around them swallowed it, turned it to nothing and for a moment he was overcome by despair, convinced the figure he faced had not heard him. Only it soon became clear that he had. The swirl of energy continued to pulse but the unseen river that had been intent on pulling Hiro away, died, leaving him suspended in the air. "Who?" His voice trembled in fear, small as ever but still there. "Why? How?"_

_Way to go Hiro. All the intelligence in the world and not a single decently phrased question among the entire lot. Where was his broken mind to mouth filter when he really needed it?_

_"You have no right to question me." Great authority echoed through the space. "But I shall grant you this boon. You may call me Arishem. As for the rest of your questions…" Arishem moved his arm to the side and opened it, manifesting a swirling image coming to life several inches away from the palm of his hand. Swirls of orange, red and yellow danced, manifesting into an all too familiar image of flickering flames._

_Hiro's breath caught in the back of his throat._

_The dancing flames shifted and moving to the side to reveal a figure, turning to run towards a blazing inferno. The figure was slight, lean and strong, clad in purple armor, with blood running down his limp right arm._

_"Hiro, no!" Hiro's memories subconsciously began to fill in the audio augmenting the silent picture show before him._

_A tall slim girl, glad in bright pink and purple, reached out to grab his good arm halting his forward momentum. He stumbled to a halt and turned to face her, fighting to slip from her grasp while she fought keeping him from the angry flames._

_"There are still people in there."_

_She shook her head, tears falling down her face as she desperately clung to him._

_"You can't go back there. It's too dangerous. The building is going to collapse at any moment."_

_A few windows shattered in the background, shards of glass flying through the air. The flames grew larger, hungrily lapping at the structure, a demon devouring its prey while helpless souls stood by and watched. Doing absolutely nothing in the face of a fate they were not prepared to fight._

_He refused… He refused to simply be another that stood by and did nothing while the demon mocked them with his power, his presence and his greed._

_"Someone has to help"_

_His arm slipped from her suddenly lifeless fingers and he turned back towards the building, running in without a second thought, not even turning around to spare a last glance for those he left behind._

_"… hiss… crackle… zzzzz… ro….. crackle.. Hi…. Hiss… ro!... re… there?"_

_He was trapped, locked in a burning building with no way out and there was nothing he or anyone else could do about it._

_"Gogo…" He whispered. The words barely audible as they were all too soon swallowed by the crackle of the hungry flames that had come to claim his life._

_"Hiro!... where… crackle… you? Hiss…swer…hiss… damnit…"_

_"Gogo…" He was alone, lost in a sea of pain and confusion, his mind fighting to make sense of things that had made sense mere moments before. "Tell Aunt Cass… Tell Aunt Cass…I love her."_

_Pain…_

_Scorching heat and dancing flames that consumed his flesh… tearing him apart…_

_"Aaaaaaaaaa!"_

_The scene was abruptly cut short before shifting._

_Rain… Rain was pouring down onto a small group of people; all dressed in black; their figures mournful against the backdrop of the melancholy sky. Crying. Just like on that day, the sky was crying, as if to echo the grief of those gathered around the grave. Aunt Cass, Honey Lemon, Fred and Wasabi were all huddled together, sharing a large pitch black umbrella, tears pouring down their faces as they threw dirt onto the coffin. And engraved onto the stone; the letters cold and stark; was a name that struck him to the core… Hiro Hamada._

_He barely had a chance to react, to flinch against the stark proof of his own death when the scene was shifting once more seeming to gain speed with each moment that passed. He saw his friends; fighting; a group of five heroes where once there were six and in each frame that passed they faced a new danger: crumbling buildings, mechanical foes, gunfire, bombings, laser weapons, a giant robot and other advanced weapons of mass destruction that Hiro couldn't even begin to comprehend. It was a massacre. There was destruction around every corner and it was too much for the small group to handle._

_They fell._

_One by one the members of his team died, helpless against their foes. A swarm of tiny robots, built using a concept similar to Hiro's micro bots, managed to overwhelm Fred, swarming into his costume and overcoming him before he even had a chance to resist. Wasabi was caught in a bomb explosion, desperately fighting to pull a little girl out of the debris that had fallen on her when the first bomb had gone off. Honey Lemon fell to her knees and clawed at her throat before finally succumbing to the gas she did not even manage to detect. Gogo died shortly thereafter, in a car accident, rushing Honey Lemon to a hospital in a last desperate bid to save her. And Baymax? Baymax was left to stand alone against a giant war machine that marched into San Fransokyo, tearing buildings apart with every step it took._

_Big Hero 6 fell and it was all his fault…_

_He could have helped. He could have found a way to deactivate the robot swarm that took Fred, disarmed the bomb that took Wasabi and built a detection device to detect harmful chemicals before the substance had laid claim to both Honey Lemon and Gogo. His knowledge of robotics and machinery could have made a difference in each and every case only it hadn't. Because he was dead and no longer able to lend any assistance to the team he had led and supported for two years._

_The images before him taunted him, mocked him with the raw knowledge of the consequences that everyone had to suffer. All because he stupidly chose to run into a burning building when he knew he was in no state to help anyone, let alone himself. Stupid… He'd been so very stupid but he knew he'd do it again. He'd wanted to help, wanted to give those trapped in that building at least a chance of survival and with it wanted to carry on his brother's legacy. He didn't regret it. Not for one moment because that moment defined him as human and as long as there was something he could do to help, he'd do it. For himself. For humanity and for… Tadashi._

White.

Hiro's vision was suddenly filled with white, the dull emotional ache in his chest shifting into sharp pain with the first ragged gasp that escaped his lips.

Torment.

Sharp spikes of agony flared through him. Each ragged breath he took was torture, to both his mind and his body and he struggled to fight past it in a bid to take in his surroundings. He was back, back in the world of the living and suffering from the whiplash of the bullet wound that had taken his life and to make things worse, he was burning, fever coursing through him like a raging river, sapping both his strength and his will to live.

Flash…

Images swirled into his mind, replaying the horrors he had been shown mere moments before, filling his head with images of blood and his heart with grief. Fred. Wasabi. Honey Lemon. Baymax… And Tadashi. They needed him. He was connected to each and every one of them on levels he couldn't even begin to understand, woven into the very threads of destiny. Their lives were all connected, part of a bigger whole and that meant he couldn't give up. Not on them and not on himself. This was just the beginning, he still had work to do and had no time for thoughts of death and failure.

Gathering himself together he sat up, ignoring the pain that coursed through him with the motion as he slipped out of bed. It was but a small price to pay, one he'd already paid several times before and he wasn't going to let it get the best of him. Not now. Not ever.

A soft whimper escaped his lips.

Rustle.

The soft sound revealed Tadashi's presence on the other side of the screen, his brother's body shifting on his bed. "Hiro? You're up early." Tadashi ended the query on a yawn, his voice still filled with sleepiness. Tadashi was still not quite awake.

Hiro glanced at the clock. Five am. Tadashi wasn't kidding. It really was early for him to be awake. The sun wasn't even up yet. But then again, the pain coursing through him was nothing to be laughed at. He wouldn't be getting any more sleep without a boatload of pain killers in his system. "I'm just going to get a glass of water." Hiro lied, struggling to keep the pain out of his tone. Tadashi was nothing if not perceptive and Hiro still needed a few minutes to himself to fully process the new information he'd received with his latest death. "Go back to bed."

"I'm still in bed, bonehead." Tadashi retorted, chuckling softly. "Can you please turn on the coffee while you're down there?" Tadashi asked on another yawn.

"Sure." Hiro agreed before hastily making his way out the door, ignoring his pain in favor of making a quick escape. He couldn't afford to be interrogated by Tadashi just yet. He needed time. Time to process, time to heal and time to come up with a new plan of action. Unfortunately time was something he didn't really have all that much of.

…

"Hiro?" Tadashi's query was a lot more lucid when Hiro returned three pain killers and less than ten minutes later, dragging a bucket along the stairs with a rhythmic thud, thud, thud, thud. "You okay?"

Hiro ignored the question. He walked straight into their shared bathroom, released the bucket and plugged the bath before turning on the cold tap. He then took a step back to stare at the tub miserably as it began fill with clear liquid, a full on pout etched across his features. This was going to suck!

"Hiro?" Tadashi peered into the bathroom cautiously, almost seeming to expect the bathroom to explode at any moment. Given Hiro's history with failed experiments he couldn't really blame his brother for being wary. "What are you doing?"

"Pouring a bath." Hiro replied shortly, reaching down to grab the bucket. Gritting his teeth, he then lifted it and upended the contents straight into the water, watching in dread as the contents tumbled in with a splash.

"Way to state the obvious, bonehead." Tadashi retorted, watching Hiro carefully.

"If you don't want me to state the obvious, don't ask stupid questions." Hiro growled in sudden irritation, pain and exhaustion shattering the little control he'd managed to retain over his mind to mouth filter thus far.

Too much.

His brain was struggling to process all the information it had received.

He couldn't do it.

Hiro couldn't maintain his façade in front of his brother when he was falling apart, fighting to deal with the whiplash his death and revival had on his body while at the same time attempting to evaluate all the new information he'd been dealt. He couldn't do it. It hurt. Everything hurt. His brain, his chest, his lungs, his skin and every muscle in his body. All of it hurt, refusing to give him that moment that he needed to think, heal and come up with a plan to save his brother, his friends and… himself.

"Hiro, you okay?" Tadashi repeated the question Hiro had ignored, stepping into the bathroom, only to pause when Hiro turned to direct a heated glare in his direction.

Hiro turned away and began to strip, biting his lower lip in a bid to remain silent. He couldn't falter. Not now. Not under the watchful stare of his brothers all too perceptive brown eyes. Once done, he turned off the tap, took a deep breath and stepped into the bath, unable to catch the miserable whimper that escaped him the moment his heated skin connected with the icy cold water. He was right. It really did suck.

Tadashi was at his side before the cry even had time to fade away, reaching out to grab hold of him just as Hiro's knees collapsed. He fell, tumbling down into the water but was quickly supported by large firm hands as Tadashi caught him and guided him the rest of the distance down. The water was FREEZING! Not surprising seeing as he'd just tossed in a bucket full of ice bit freaking hell... Its icy fingers clashed with the fire in his skin and it hurt. Every nerve flared suddenly to life, protesting the sudden change in temperature but he wouldn't give. He needed the fever gone and this was the most efficient way to achieve that.

"What the hell! HIRO! You're burning up!" Tadashi exclaimed, his large hands travelling over Hiro's heated skin in sudden panic, his touch soothing the pain in Hiro's nerves. "We need to call an ambulance!"

And so the cycle began anew.

"No." Hiro rasped, reaching out to grab hold of one of Tadashi's hands. "No doctors."

"Hiro." Tadashi calmed his tone, attempting to reason with his brother. "You're running a fever and it's dangerously high." He reached out with his free hand to gently run his fingers through Hiro's sweat soaked hair.

"No doctors." He repeated, moving into the caress. "The fever will break on its own."

"Hiro, you can't know…"

"The fever will break on its own." Hiro insisted, opening fever glazed eyes to look mournfully up at his brother. "Please… Tadashi… no doctors."

Tadashi scowled, suddenly held captive by the depth of Hiro's gaze. He should go. He should call an ambulance. Hiro's temperature was far too high to be considered safe. Only he was trapped. Trapped by the profound conviction and knowledge he could see in Hiro's brown eyes and he could literally feel himself cave in to his brothers wishes. "Okay, no doctors. But if this fever doesn't go down in the next couple of hours I'm calling an ambulance whether you like it or not."

"Deal." Hiro agreed, hanging his head to stare at his hands, shivers coursing through his slim frame. He'd won, gaining a momentary reprieve that he could use to think, to process, to heal only… Oh look, he'd somehow managed to weave the fingers of his right hand with the fingers of Tadashi's left. When had that happened?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW! This chapter took an unexpected turn.


	33. Reprieve

**Reprieve**

Scent: Soldered circuits, greased metal and baked goods.

Touch: Large hands, rough finger pads and gentle caress.

Sight: Fading darkness, looming light and large brown eyes.

Hiro blinked.

A gentle smile accompanied by sound. "Welcome back to the land of the living, bonehead." Tadashi greeted him, ruffling his hair before pulling away to pick a bowl up off of Hiro's desk. "I come bearing vital sustenance. Soup. You know, for the invalid." His tone was playful.

Hiro blinked again, his mind backtracking to the last events he recalled, skipping right past death, pain, large godlike beings and portals and heading straight towards large panicked brown eyes and gentle hands that soothed the fire in his skin with ice cold water. Oh yeah, he'd dunked himself into an ice cold bath with the intention of taking care of himself for a change only to have Tadashi seamlessly take over while he stupidly fell asleep. Go figure.

"I'm not an invalid." He grumbled as he cautiously sat up, testing his body for aches and pain. He was relieved to note that the worst of it was gone, his brain finally catching up to what his body already knew. He was fine. He yawned, stretching his arms up over his head before reaching for the bowl of soup Tadashi was holding out towards him, scowling down at the contents. "And I don't like soup."

"Well you're just going to have to live with it because that's what you're getting after that fever of yours." Tadashi retorted.

A new scent: food… crispy, fried, oily goodness permeating the air with the most wonderful god given aroma known to man. Bacon!

"No fair." Hiro whined glancing up to see Tadashi, sitting at his desk, holding a plate piled high with crispy bacon, friend eggs and toast. "Why do I have to eat this when you get eggs and bacon? I want meat. Lots of greasy, fried delicious meat." He turned on his best puppy dog face, large doe eyes, quivering lip and all.

"Because you fell asleep in the bath and I had to carry you back to bed. You need something you can keep down and I need the good stuff to regain my strength." Tadashi teased, still completely immune to Hiro's machinations. Why? Why did Tadashi have to know him so damned well? How had his puppy dog expression not managed to improve enough to melt Tadashi's heart when he'd had so much time to perfect it without Tadashi's knowledge?

"But it's bacon." Hiro whined, staring at said meat.

"I know." Tadashi lifted a piece before biting into it with a wicked smile. "And it's all mine."

"Bacon." Hiro repeated, pouting.

And in five, four, three, two…

Tadashi sighed and Hiro ducked in reaction to the sound, using his hair to hide the small smile that was slipping onto his lips. He was close. So close to victory he could practically smell it and it smelt a lot like greasy, crispy, crunchy, delicious bacon. "Alright." See? Victory. "I'll make you a deal." No. No deals. This is not how it was supposed to go. "Finish your soup and you can have half of my bacon."

Darn it… only half… and to get that half he still had to eat the bowl of soup in his grasp. Why? Why Tadashi? Just why? "I don't like soup." Hiro repeated, staring despondently down at the tepid liquid in the bowl. "You're supposed to _eat_ food, not _drink_ it."

"That may or may not be a valid argument but it is not going to change the conditions of my agreement." Tadashi said, taking another pointed bite of bacon, this time along with some toast. "No soup, no bacon. You know the terms. Your move."

Bacon…

He wanted it.

It was there, its scent tantalizing him with its presence while the soup in his hands mocked him. He could have it. He could fill his mouth with meaty crunchy goodness but in order to get there he had to consume the mess in the bowl first and he wasn't really sure the cost was worth the eventual gain.

"You know, the longer you think about it, the less bacon I'll have on my plate." Tadashi pointed out waving a new piece about with a mischievous glimmer in his eyes. Why? Why did Tadashi know him so damned well? Able to detect and take advantage of his weaknesses so flawlessly even though Hiro was now mentally two years older than Tadashi realized.

"I'm eating. I'm eating!" Hiro hastily replied, lifting a spoon and shoveling its contents into his mouth with a grimace. He swallowed down the contents before continuing. "Don't you dare eat all my bacon!" He waved his tablespoon at Tadashi in reprimand.

"Okay, okay. A deal's a deal." Tadashi raised his arms in mock surrender before reaching down to separate a portion of bacon from the rest of the contents on his plate. The portion he set aside was decidedly larger than the portion that remained.

Hiro grinned, eyeing the portion that was waiting for him before returning to his soup with a dejected sigh.

"It's really not that bad, you know." Tadashi commented. "Aunt Cass is a good cook."

"You're right." Hiro agreed poking a soggy carrot with his spoon. "It's worse. There isn't a gourmet chef on this planet that can make soup taste good."

"Now, you're just being dramatic."

"It's not dramatic if it's true." Hiro retorted on a sulk.

"I'd like to argue that there are many people on this planet that would disagree with you but I suspect you're just going to turn around and tell me those people are all idiots so I'm not going to bother." Tadashi said with a sigh, setting his plate aside before reaching out to rest a hand on Hiro's forehead. "Your fever appears to have come down." He smoothly changed the subject not even giving Hiro a chance to confirm the suspicions voiced in his earlier statement.

Hiro ate another spoonful of soup before speaking. "I told you it would."

"Seeing as you're not exactly qualified to make such an assessment, I'm not going to apologize for not taking your word for it. I'll reconsider my stance when you come home with a PhD gained in the medical field."

_I'm more qualified than you know._

Hiro fought to ignore the dark memories of death and revival that lingered in the corner of his mind, reminding him of the battle that still lay ahead. This moment, the time he was sharing with Tadashi was but a reprieve that would be over all too soon. "I don't need a PhD to know my body." He retorted petulantly, his statement more an emotional reaction than a logical one.

Tadashi flicked Hiro's forehead in retaliation. "That's not exactly true and you know it. You may be able to detect and gauge the severity of the symptoms you're experiencing but you're not qualified to accurately diagnose the cause or the treatment thereof."

"I don't understand why we're even having this debate when I was right." Hiro dropped his spoon back into his bowl and looked up at Tadashi in challenge. "The fever broke on its own without the need to visit any doctors or hospitals."

"Because you were lucky." Tadashi said. "You can't keep resisting medical treatment simply because you don't like hospitals and are afraid of doctors. One day it's going to come back to bite you in the ass and I may not be around to help you. What then?"

What then?

_Then I die. Trapped in a burning building all because I thought I was strong enough to overcome something even you failed to escape from. That's what._

A sharp thread of pain coursed through Hiro's heart, images of his torn broken body replaying in his mind's eye as he revisited the scene that started it all. He should have listened. He had been in no state to re-enter that burning building, his right arm, hanging broken at his side, his left ankle swollen and twisted, dizzy and exhausted from pulling people out but he'd done it anyway. Only his fear of doctors and hospitals had had nothing to do with it. No, instead he'd been pushed forward by the special brand of stupidity he'd inherited from his brother. The same brother that was now trying to teach him reason. Oh the irony.

Tadashi reached out to run his fingers through Hiro's hair when he made no move to reply. "Come on. Finish your soup. I have half a plate of bacon with your name written all over it." And just like that, he managed to smoothly redirect the conversation once again.

Hiro resumed eating, silently watching Tadashi as Tadashi returned his gaze. There was something there, something Hiro couldn't quite put his finger on. He could practically see the questions burning in Tadashi's eyes but he refrained from asking them, simply directing a soft caring smile at Hiro as he watched him eat.

"Just ask." Hiro demanded, suddenly desperate to know what was on his brother's mind.

Tadashi frowned. "Ask what?"

"Whatever it is you're trying so hard not to ask me." Hiro said, biting his lip in reaction to the anxiety that suddenly coursed through him.

A flicker of surprise crossed Tadashi's features. "I don't know what you're talking…"

"Cut the crap. I know you. I know that look you're giving me." The spoon in his grasp was once again waved through the air as he spoke.

Tadashi face palmed. "Unbelievable." He muttered softly before running his hand down his face. Dropping his hand into his lap he looked back up, once again meeting Hiro's gaze. "I'm just trying to figure you out." He admitted. "I've known you your whole life and all of a sudden I feel like I'm looking at a stranger. Don't get me wrong, you're still my brother but you've suddenly changed and I'm trying to figure out if the fever has not perhaps addled your mind."

_Little do you know…_

"I thought I've been rather coherent." Hiro protested.

"And therein lies my dilemma." Tadashi sighed. "I feel like you've grown up overnight and I'm trying to figure out how I could have missed it. Not all that long ago you were completely engrossed in your bot fighting career and now all of a sudden you're taking the initiative to bring down your own fever, asking me what's on my mind and looking at me with eyes that seem to be reaching straight into my soul."

_Twice you have failed. Do not fail me again._

Arishem's words echoed through Hiro's mind, reminding him… Reminding him of everything that he had lived through and everything that had changed him. "You're imagining things." Hiro lied, the words leaving a bitter taste on his tongue as he casually brushed off Tadashi's concern. He hated the fact that he had to lie to his brother but he couldn't risk letting the truth out. Not yet. Not when Tadashi was still unlikely to believe him.

Tadashi shook his head. "I don't think so. I think you're hiding something from me. Something big."

Hiro hastily spooned more soup into his mouth, hoping desperately it would hide the reaction Tadashi could read so well. "I'm not hiding anything from you. Well not anything you don't already know about, anyway. I'm just sitting here, planning my next bot fight."

Wait for it…

"I'm trying to figure out how much money to take."

Wait for it…

"It's an art you know. If you take too little you can't buy your way into a fight but if you take too much people start to get suspicious."

"HIRO!" Tadashi exclaimed in sudden exasperation. "Bot fighting is illegal! You graduated high school at thirteen and this is what you decide to do? If you think for one moment I'm just going to stand by and let you endanger yourself just to make some quick cash you need to think again. You're going to get yourself arrested. I'm not going to let you become a felon and waste all you potential running some kind of crime operation just because you're bored and looking for a thrill."

Bingo! Mission accomplished. Tadashi was not the only Hamada that knew how to change the subject.

"Are you even listening to me?"

"I'm on a roll, big brother and there's no stopping me." Hiro casually ate his soup as he poured more fuel on the already raging fire.

"No stopping you? No stopping you?!" Tadashi leaned in to level a heated glare straight at Hiro. "Seriously Hiro, when are you going to start doing something with that big brain of yours?"

Hiro opened his mouth, intending to insert another cocky statement into the fray only to come up short, his mind suddenly drawing a blank as it pulled him back into memories of another conversation that echoed the one he was currently engaged in.

_There's a fight across town. If I book, I can still make it._

_When are you gonna start doing something with that big brain of yours?_

_What? Go to college like you? So people can tell me stuff I already know?_

_Unbelievable. What would mom and dad say?_

"You have so much talent but you simply refuse to do anything with it. What would mom and dad say?"

_"I don't know. They're gone. They died when I was three, remember?"_

"I don't know. They're gone. They died when I was three, remember?" The words escaped his lips before he could stop them; taking him back down the path he'd taken all those years ago. He still wasn't over it. Despite the time he'd had to grow, despite having to come to terms with Tadashi's death, he still wasn't over the fact that he'd never been given the chance to get to know his parents. Some things, it seemed, never changed.

His response was greeted by silence, Tadashi's rant cut abruptly short in the face of Hiro's pain and the weight those words carried.

"They loved you, you know." Tadashi broke the silence a long moment later, his words soft.

Hiro glanced up at his brother.

Tadashi reached out and took the still half full bowl of soup out of Hiro's hands before replacing it with his own bacon laden plate. "From the moment you were conceived until the moment they took their last breath. They knew you were special. They knew you weren't going to be able to live what is considered to be a normal childhood and did everything in their power to protect you. Unfortunately, they died before they could finish the job."

Hiro bit his lip, biting back the waves of emotion that threatened to escape him. He knew his parents loved him. His logical mind knew it and understood it but he didn't _feel_ it. He couldn't remember. He couldn't remember what they wore, what they liked or even the sound of their voices raised in laughter or even anger. He couldn't remember any of the time they spent together, the things they did or the places they went. He couldn't remember any of it and it left him feeling cheated, angry and jealous to the core that Tadashi at least had that to hold onto. "I don't remember."

"I don't think that's true." Tadashi leaned forward. "You may not remember them here." He gently rested a finger on Hiro's forehead, "but you will never forget them here." He moved to rest the finger on Hiro's chest, directly over his heart.

Hiro's heart ached in response.

"Can you…" Hiro paused to lick suddenly dry lips. "Can you tell me about them?"

"Sure." Tadashi agreed, reaching out to ruffle Hiro's hair. And that is exactly what he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry guys. I'm still super swamped and sick (AGAIN). Grrrrr…. Why winter? Why?!
> 
> Now to address everyone's confusion: Arishem is a cameo appearance of a different character from the marvel universe. He is a celestial and is portrayed as the being that decides whether earth can continue to exist or not. He apparently has the ability to seal portals to godly realms. I took these two concepts and twisted them around a little in my story to provide an explanation for Hiro's time loops. I personally am NOT a marvel fan and pretty much only like the Big Hero 6 and Guardians of the Galaxy movies but I though incorporating this character was a nice way to stay true to the origins of Big Hero 6.


	34. Breakdown

**Breakdown**

Pale light, pristine walkways, rustling leaves and familiar gloom were all in tune with soft footsteps on grass. He'd been here before. He'd done this before and the second time round was a veritable breeze. Okay, so maybe the second time round was every bit as tricky and anxiety filled as the first. If there was one thing he'd learnt during all his loops it was that nothing, not even reliving the same events in time, was predictable. Having done everything before did, however, give him an edge he had not previously had. He neatly turned the corner and dodged the rose bush that had managed to prick him the last time round. Hah! Take that you stupid bush!

A few steps later he got up onto tiptoe and peered into an all too familiar dark room, a cocky smile already slipping into place. As expected, the interior was dark and abandoned. So far, so good. Everything was slipping into place exactly as it had in the previous time loop; including the tool he'd used break into Tadashi's lab once before. Lifting the device he pressed it to the glass and lined it up with the metal before using its inbuilt electromagnet to pop it open. Easy as pie!

Slipping the incriminating evidence back into his pocket, he pushed the window open, lifted himself up and slid into the darkness within. Remembering how the last attempt had ended, he made sure to enter feet first. The moment his feet connected with the ground, the room was filled with the soft sound of vinyl inflating. Baymax had just activated without his usual prompt. Turning to face the healthcare companion in surprise, Hiro moved to speak only to be left gaping when Baymax beat him to it.

"Hello, Hiro." Baymax greeted him titling his head to the side. "Why are we reprocessing this timeline again? Did we not succeed in our mission to save Tadashi from certain death?"

A pang of guilt coursed through Hiro but he pushed it aside. He had things to do and time was of the essence. "No, we just ended up making a bigger mess." Hiro admitted in a rush before hastily moving the topic of conversation away from dangerous territory. "We've got to go." He reached out to grab hold of the healthcare companion's hand. "Before fate decides to mess with me again by having someone catch us here. I probably won't be able to talk my way out of this one and if Tadashi finds out…" Oh, never mind. He'd looped right back onto dangerous ground. Hiro trailed off leaving the rest unspoken. If Tadashi found out he was busy stealing Baymax (again!), there would probably be hell to pay.

Baymax blinked, waddling after him as Hiro pulled him towards the window. "Did saving Callaghan's daughter not elevate Professor Callaghan's neurotransmitter levels and ease his distress?" Baymax asked in confusion.

Hiro shook his head. A sliver of regret coursed through him but he quickly shook it off. He didn't have time for this. Not right now. "Things are a little more complicated than that, buddy." Hiro pushed Baymax towards the window and lined him up with the narrow space. "The entire experiment is one big mess that we frankly don't have any real hope of cleaning up without some serious help." He pushed, moving to squeeze Baymax into the space all while continuing to speak in a rush; hoping to keep Baymax distracted long enough to prevent him from attempting to solve a problem Hiro was currently doing his best to ignore. "Baymax, you need to deflate so we can get you through the window." Oh the joys of denial. As they say, not just a river in Egypt.

Baymax complied silently processing Hiro's comments as he released air into the room with a soft hiss.

Hiro didn't give him enough time to complete the deflation process, let alone formulate a response. He shoved Baymax through the narrow space the moment he deemed him small enough, ignoring the air that flowed over his skin when he came close to the exit vents. Baymax landed on the grass with a soft plop, still in the process of deflating air. Hiro then grabbed Baymax's charging station and tossed it out before following after, landing gracefully on his feet. See, he could be graceful when he put his mind to it!

Baymax blinked up at the sky, hastily processing his change in state before switching the deflation process to the inflation one.

"Come on Baymax. Let's go." Hiro grabbed hold of Baymax's partially deflated arm and pulled, intending to pull Baymax up. He managed to get the healthcare companion all the way to his feet before suddenly finding himself buried in white vinyl as Baymax toppled right on top of him, taking them both to the ground.

"I have fallen." Baymax informed him.

"You think?" Hiro retorted on a whisper, his anxiety beginning to bleed through. He reached up and attempted to push the white vinyl off. "Baymax, get off me. We really need to go. There's more at stake than just Tadashi's life here and I need to figure out how on earth I'm going to fix this when I'm just one person without a clue as to what I'm doing here let alone an idea of how I am supposed to fix this." His walls were beginning to crack and the reality of the situation he was in finally hit him like a ton of bricks. "I can't do this. How am I supposed to fix the entire planet when I can't even fix myself? I mean seriously? What kind of idiot gives such an important mission to a mess of a teenager like me when all I know how to do is mess everything up, when everything I do just falls apart and… and…"

And all I can do is just stand by and watch Tadashi die. Again, and again, and again and…

"You are exhibiting the signs of emotional distress." The inflation process finally completed and allowed Baymax to stand. Hiro, however, remained on the ground, drowning in the panic and fear that was busy taking over his mind. "Your heart rate is elevated and your breathing is erratic. Suggested treatment includes taking deep and calming breaths and reassurance." Baymax reached down to pay Hiro's head. "There, there. It will be alright."

"I can't do this." Hiro repeated on a hoarse whisper, a shudder coursing through his slim frame. He lifted an arm and used it to cover his eyes. "I can't fix this."

"Not everything can be fixed." Baymax agreed. "But that does not mean we cannot try."

"I've tried." Hiro clenched his fists, the movement echoing the frustration that filled his tone. "I've tried so many times and all I've managed to do is make things even worse. I'm tired. I'm tired of coming back to this point in time, tired of thinking, tired of making plans, tired of fighting, tired of dying and most of all tired of watching Tadashi die. I can't do this. I can't do it anymore. I'm just one person and there is only so much I can do."

"Where one person fails, a team may succeed. Perhaps we should contact your friends?" Baymax suggested his chest lighting up to display five circles, four of which contained snapshots of his team, his friends and…

Oh no!

"No. No, no, no. I.. I… Don't do that." Hiro sat up and reached out to touch Baymax's chest. "We can't. They don't know me. Not yet." And maybe, if his current planned course of action failed, not ever.

Baymax reached out and wrapped his arms around Hiro.

Hiro reached up and returned the embrace, burying his face in Baymax's chest while he waited for the fear and grief to run its course. He didn't have time for this. He should already putting his next plan into action but he needed this. He needed this one moment, this one brief space in time to gather back his courage and what little remained of his sanity. "Thanks Baymax."

"You are most welcome." Baymax replied.

Withdrawing from the embrace Hiro moved to push himself up off the ground when he registered a soft sound that did not belong. Freezing in place, he strained to listen, his mind racing to make sense of it. "Baymax, is that…?" The incomplete question escaped him on a soft whisper as Hiro was once again made aware of their surroundings. He could hear whistling and the sound was getting louder with each moment that passed.

"Someone appears to be approaching our location." Baymax replied just as softly, confirming Hiro's worst fear. Of all the places to have a mental breakdown he just _had_ to pick the grass right in front of Tadashi's lab, with Baymax still active, the white vinyl glimmering softly in the pale early morning light for all to see.

"Hurry, Baymax. You need to deflate." Hiro hissed, scrambling to his feet and running towards the charging station that lay not far off to his right. Grabbing hold of the casing he dragged it back towards Baymax. "We need to get out of here." He dropped the casing and grabbed Baymax's arm, maneuvering him into the station. "One foot in front of the other." He whispered, offering instructions in the hopes of speeding up the process.

Baymax obeyed. He stepped into the station and began to deflate. Hiro winced at the sound of deflating air, looking desperately around all while anxiously bouncing up and down on his feet as he was forced to wait for the deactivation process to complete.

Come on.

Hisssssssssss…

Come on, come on, come ON!

Hisssss….

Someone is bound to hear it and catch us and then Tadashi is going to find out and my plan is going to be ruined and everything I did is going to be for naught and…

Hiss… click.

Hiro's panicked thoughts were cut short by the soft click signifying the completion of the process. Reaching down he grabbed hold of the handles installed into the case and swung it onto his back with a soft groan. Who knew Baymax was so heavy? With his burden securely in place he began to walk, slipping in the darkness mere moments before the flickering lights on the walkways revealed the figure of a rather portly security guard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is a little short but this story needs switch to the next scene next so I am going to leave it here.


	35. Chrononaut

**Chrononaut**

Come on Hiro. You can do it. It's not that hard. Just lift your hand and…

Hiro was standing in front of a large double paneled door trying to convince himself to put the rather desperate plan he had in mind into action. He could do this. All he had to do was knock. It couldn't be simpler, right? All he had to do was drop his hand down and connect with the wood only… Only nothing was further from the truth. He could knock. Once he did that someone would come and open the door. They would see him and ask him what he was doing there and then… and then… And then was the entire crux of his problem because he had absolutely no idea what would follow.

Hiro dropped the hand he'd lifted back to his side and began to pace, back and forth, desperately trying to plan the conversation that was bound to follow. There had to be something he could say. Some way he could make everything he had just been through believable. I mean, it couldn't be that hard, could it?

Right. Time to face the proverbial dragon.

Squaring his shoulders, Hiro stopped pacing and raised his hand once more, turning to face the door. Come on Hiro. You can do it. Just lift your hand and knock.

…

Turned out he couldn't do it. Fear and uncertainty rose up within him causing him to drop his hand once more as he abandoned the idea of knocking in favor of continuing to pace back and forth in indecision. What was he even thinking? What on earth possessed him to even imagine this was a good idea when there were simply so many things that could go wrong? People didn't just walk up to complete strangers, tell them crazy tales and come out of it unscathed, did they? At the very least he was risking a call to the police. At worst, a very long visit to an asylum somewhere. He couldn't just knock on the door and expect…

"May I help you?"

Hiro froze mid step, his rapidly spiraling thoughts suddenly silenced by the unexpected question. His gut filled with dread, he turned to face the speaker, wide brown eyes locking onto a familiar dispassionate expression. "I… uh… I was just…um… pacing?" He trailed off, not really sure what to say now that he'd been caught in the act.

Way to go. Way to state the obvious, genius!

The figure before him didn't even twitch, remaining silent as he continued to wait for Hiro to answer the question he had asked.

Hiro shifted beneath his gaze before sighing. Now that he had been caught, he might as well go through with his initial plan. Taking a deep breath he turned back towards the door and raised his head. "I'm here to see Fred." He said calmly, slipping on the confident mask he'd mastered during his bot fighting days.

"And who, might I ask, should I say is calling?" Heathcliff asked.

Oh no. He hadn't thought things through that far. Fred didn't know him yet and would probably be unlikely to come to the door to meet a complete stranger! "Ha… Hamada." He stammered, his brain still trying to solve the problem at hand. He needed someone that Fred knew, someone Fred would be willing to meet with. "Tadashi Hamada." Hiro regretted it the moment the words slipped out of his lips.

"Very well. One moment please." Heathcliff slipped back into the house and closed the door behind him, leaving Hiro to contemplate the potential consequences of his actions, alone. And so began a renewed cycle of spiraling thoughts.

Why? Why had he used Tadashi's name? Hiro face palmed with a groan. That was simply asking for trouble. When would his mouth learn to stop blurting out the first thing that popped into his head when he was cornered? It almost always got him into trouble. With experience comes wisdom. Or so he'd always been told only that didn't appear to be working for him.

Hiro began to pace once more.

If Tadashi ever found out, Hiro was a dead man. Okay, that was technically not true. Tadashi was unlikely to actually kill him but he certainly wouldn't put it past his brother to attempt to ground him for life. It was one thing to go out bot fighting, identity fraud was another thing entirely. And to top things off, he'd pretty much handed the information to Tadashi seeing as the person he was trying to fool was actually one of Tadashi's closest friends which meant that the information would probably travel to his brother quickly and…

"Yo, Tadashi, my man!" The door swung open, a familiar voice once again interrupting Hiro's downward spiral into panic. "How did you find out where I lived?" Fred practically bounced out the door, excitement written all over his face only to stumble to a halt in sudden confusion. "You're not Tadashi."

Hiro blinked up at him, shifting awkwardly beneath his gaze. "No… I… uh… No, I'm not." He admitted, dropping his gaze in sudden trepidation.

Fred walked closer and leaned forward to peer at him. "But you do kinda look like him." He walked around Hiro, carefully inspecting him from all angles. Inspection done he took a step back before confidently declaring. "You must be his younger brother, Hiro." It was a statement, not a question, the confident grin on his face only serving to emphasize that he knew he was right. "What can I do for you, little guy?"

"Well…" Hiro glanced up, putting on his best innocent expression. "You could start by giving me a place to hide."

"Hide?" Fred looked surprised. "Why do you need a place to hide?" He turned and looked towards the street, trying to see if someone had perhaps followed Hiro to his house. "Wait. Don't tell me. Tadashi says you're some kind of genius. I'll bet there is an evil mastermind after you! Probably hoping to kidnap you so you can invent something that will help him get revenge and you need to get away because the fate of the entire world rests on your shoulders!" He declared, pumping an arm up into the air.

The deduction was so typically Fred. Completely random, off the wall, and eerily held more truth than Fred himself probably realized. "Something like that." Hiro's reply was cautious and he too peered at the street, playing up the conspiracy a little. "But I can't talk about it out here. Someone might overhear us."

"Oh, right." Fred nodded stepping back to push open his front door. "Come on in, you'll be safe here. Mi porte d'entrée es su porte d'entrée." And there it was, Fred's terrible French. "That's French for my home is your home." He explained, stepping in and making space for Hiro to follow.

"It's really not." The words slipped past Hiro's lips without his knowledge as he bent down to lift Baymax's case.

"It's not?"

"What's not?" Hiro asked, standing back up, Baymax's case firmly in his grasp.

"Is Mi porte d'entrée es su porte d'entrée not French for my home is your home?" Fred asked triggering a sudden rewind in Hiro's thoughts.

Oh no…

He'd voiced the echo of Honey Lemon's words out loud? Go figure. His mind to mouth filter was _still_ broken. Maybe it was time to just give up on fixing it altogether. This was, after all, Fred he was dealing with. "Yeah, it's not." He confirmed on a grin. "But I wouldn't worry too much about it." He stepped into Fred's home and confidently began to head towards the Otaku's room. "Your misuse of French is what makes you uniquely you."

"It is?" Fred closed the door and began to follow.

"Yeah." Hiro grinned. "That and your comic book obsession." Hiro marched through the hallway containing Fred's family portraits, not even pausing to look at any of them.

"Comic books are rad." Fred agreed, returning Hiro's grin. "All that drama and adventure, evil villains," He raised his arms and wiggled his fingers, "And heroes that swoop in to save the day." And then leaped up and pounced forward, landing lightly on his feet, knees bent and arms stretched out to the sides. "What's there not to love? Wouldn't it be awesome if we could be heroes too? We could save damsels in distress, fight off bad guys and turn into giant fire breathing lizards."

Hiro's grin softened. The familiarity of his surroundings and Fred's rather predictable over the top behavior effectively washed away his earlier doubt, panic and fear. This… could work. "Yeah it would be awesome." He agreed, shifting Baymax's case into one hand, so that he could use the other to push open the door to Fred's room. Marching into the room, he headed towards Fred's white couch before dropping Baymax's case beside it. He then stretched his arms up over his head, worked out the kinks in his muscles and collapsed down onto the couch with an exhausted sigh. It really had been a long day.

Fred followed him in, pausing to close his bedroom door before joining Hiro on the couch. Threading his fingers together, he stretched his arms out in front of him, clicking both his fingers and his elbow. He then casually turned to face Hiro, resting one arm on the back of the couch before calmly declaring. "You're from the future, aren't you?"

"Yeah." Hiro agreed absently. He was exhausted and now that he was finally off his feet it was beginning to catch up to him. He'd been up all night after all.

"I knew it!" Fred exclaimed in triumph, practically bouncing up and down on the couch in excitement.

Huh? Why did it feel like he was missing something?

"I knew time travel was real, but would anyone listen to me?"

Wait… How did Fred know about the time travel?

Hiro shook his head, trying to gather his thoughts once more. He must have misheard. Fred couldn't possibly have…

"No. They keep telling me it's 'not science'." Fred used air quotes to emphasize his point. "Just because something starts out as fiction doesn't mean it can't become reality. In fact most of the ideas for technology we take for granted today started off as a fiction." Fred nodded sagely, appearing, for a moment, to possess all the knowledge in the world before slipping back into his usual Otaku craziness. "So, how did you manage to travel back in time?"

Oh no.

"Was it a time machine? A portal to another dimension or maybe some kind of potion that sent your awareness back in time? Did Honey Lemon manage to invent a potion to turn me into a giant fire breathing lizard at will? How about invisible sandwiches? Has that become a thing?"

No, no, no, no, no, no, no!

Hiro all but fell off the couch, scrambling to keep himself in place. "W… Whatever gave you that idea?" He stammered, still battling surprise in a bid to regain his composure. When had the conversation managed to go off on _that_ tangent?

"Well, you know who I am," Fred lifted his hands and began to tick of points, "where I live, what I like, what my house looks like and where my room is and I haven't met you yet. Well not in this timeline anyway. I must have already met you in the one you come from."

This was bad. This was so bad. He'd let too much slip. Revealed too much. He had to fix it. Quickly, before things got too far out of hand. "That's because T… Tadashi told me about you." He blurted out, desperately trying to undo what he'd just done.

"Nice try." Fred stretched again, this time imitating Hiro's earlier stretch, before seeming to melt into the couch. "The big T-man doesn't know where I live, let alone the layout of my home and room. You just walked through it all like you live here and didn't even look at that." Fred pointed to the painting that depicted a warrior version of him on a tiger. "It's not possible to ignore something that AWESOME the first time you see it."

"I… uh…" Think Hiro. Think. "That's because…" There must be a way to fix this, a way to convince Fred that…

Wait.

Wait just one minute.

Why was he trying to convince Fred that he wasn't some kind of time traveler when he could use this information to his advantage? Fred had just done half the work for him. Now all he had to do was convince Fred to help him save Tadashi's life. "Looks like you caught me." Hiro directed a sheepish expression at Fred, sub consciously reaching up to rest his hand on the back of his own neck. "I should've known I couldn't hide it from you."

"That's right." Fred agreed smugly, crossing his arms. "I may look like your typical lazy college student but am actually hiding brilliant deductive skills which I have carefully honed by reading every comic book ever written. Okay, maybe not _every_ comic book as that would probably take a lot of time and not leave me with any time to hang with my buddies but you get the idea." Fred grinned at him.

Hiro face palmed. Fred was nothing if not blatantly overconfident so it was unsurprising that he thought he was some kind of modern day Sherlock Holmes. Unfortunately brilliant deductive reasoning was not exactly Fred's forte. More like dumb luck but that was a skill in itself he guessed. "Yeah, I get the idea." Hiro agreed, pulling his hand down to reveal a grin every bit as cocky as the one Fred was directing at him. He'd really missed this. "So, genius, tell me why I'm here then." He challenged, wanting to see just how far Fred could take this.

"Let's see." Fred lifted a hand to his chin and frowned thoughtfully. "We're obviously friends in the future. You've been to my home, so we obviously hang out. You're smart and related to Tadashi. Oh, I know! The big T-man must have introduced us to one another. That's how me met isn't it?"

Hiro nodded.

"Makes sense. He's always talking about you, man. He's so proud of all your achievements. Okay, maybe not _all_ of them. He's not exactly a fan of your bot fighting career. He's always going on about how you're wasting all you potential. Personally I think he needs to chill. Bot fights are really cool. Especially when everyone is taken by surprise by a bot they all thought didn't have a chance. Its' really cool when a small bot ends up in a ring with a large one that keeps winning and all of a sudden leaps up and snatches the win away from the big bot." Fred leaped to his feet and raised his arms in demonstration. "It's like a super hero origin story. The little bot rises from the ashes and takes the villain by surprise leaving everyone around him shocked and amazed."

Hiro stared, his jaw slack. He'd thought he knew everything there was to know about the Otaku but Fred had just managed to completely surprise him, revealing a side Hiro hadn't known existed. "You like bot fights?" He asked in disbelief, still trying to comprehend how _that_ had not come up even once in the two years they had been friends. To be fair though, it was a topic he'd avoided after Tadashi died. "But they're illegal."

"Bot fights are not illegal." Fred waved his hand, brushing the comment off. "Betting on bot fights is illegal. There's nothing illegal about watching a couple of robots duke it out," Fred bounced on his feet pretending to box against an imaginary opponent, "as long as you're not placing any money on the outcome."

"Try telling that to Tadashi." Hiro couldn't help but mutter.

"Tadashi does tend to have a rather black and white approach to life." Fred agreed, settling back down. "Which is why he'd make an awesome hero. I can just picture it, Tadashi with super powers, sweeping in to save us all from ourselves. It's almost like he was born to play the role. Don't you think?"

Almost like he was born to play the role.

Fred's words echoed through Hiro's mind bringing with them threads of both agony and grief. Fred was correct. Tadashi really did have the perfect personality to become a Hero. He was genuinely good and kind, always concerned about doing the right thing and the welfare of others. He'd even gone so far as to design and build a healthcare robot that could be used to help heal people, both mentally and physically. Hiro on the other hand, appeared to be the complete opposite. He was cocky, arrogant and quick to anger and the robots he'd invented were used to fight. It was incredibly ironic then that it was Hiro that had taken up that role instead. "Yeah." Hiro softly agreed looking up to meet Fred's gaze with grief reflected in his eyes. "Tadashi would have been a better hero than me."

Tadashi would have been a better hero than me.

Stronger, kinder, older, smarter, friendlier, just _better_ … And that's when he was suddenly struck by a disturbing train of thought: Perhaps he was never meant to be part of Big Hero 6. After all, what did he know? He was just one kid. One cocky teenager who actually had the arrogance to think he could lead and make a difference when all he'd really accomplished was causing not only the death of his beloved brother but also his own, over and over again despite his best efforts to avoid it. Maybe he hadn't traveled back in time to save his older brother. Maybe he'd simply returned to die in his place…

It was a distressing notion, and not one he really wanted to ponder on too deeply lest it drive him insane.

"Hey, little man. You okay?"

Hiro blinked, Fred's voice once again pulled him back into the present. "Yeah, I'm fine." He lied, the words slipping smoothly past his lips.

"You look like you just saw a ghost."

"No." Hiro shook his head. "I was just… lost in thought." He hedged, pushing the dark revelation to the back of his mind in the hopes of ignoring it a little longer. He didn't really have time for it, or the implications it had on his chosen course of action.

Fred frowned at him, clearly unconvinced.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here." Hiro quickly changed the subject, hoping to avoid the barrage of concern Fred was about to direct at him. "I have a preposition for you. I want to create a team of super heroes and I want you to be a part of it." His words quickly caught Fred's attention and the Otaku began to bounce up and down on his feet in barely contained excitement. "I'll even turn you into a fire breathing lizard."

And with those words Hiro knew his distraction tactic had succeeded.

"You can do that?!" The barely restrained excitement suddenly exploded as Fred literally leaped up into the air. "You can really turn me into a fire breathing lizard? But Honey Lemon says she can't create a chemical formula to do that. She said it's 'not science'."

"She's right. Technically I'm not going to physically turning you into a fire breathing lizard. I want to build you a fire breathing lizard suit that you can wear. It will double as both armor and a weapon. I won't be using chemistry, I'll be using robotics."

"A fire breathing lizard suit." Fred stared at Hiro in awe, the gears in his head turning. "And a super hero team. I like where this is heading! I'm so in! So, who else are you planning on inviting into the team?" Fred easily agreed to join the team before allowing his curiosity to get the better of him.

"Well, that's where you come in." Hiro shifted, lifting his left leg to rest it on his right knee and resting his arm on the back of Fred's couch in the hopes of creating the illusion of confidence he was far from feeling. "I need you to help me convince Wasabi, Honey Lemon and Gogo to join us." He watched Fred carefully, silently hoping the Otaku would agree to help him. Fred was, after all, currently his only viable link to the rest of the team.

"You want to include the entire gang?!" Fred continued to bounce up and down in excitement, already picturing the team in his mind. "That's so cool. I can't wait to tell everyone. They'll be so psyched. We're all really tight you know. We do everything together. Everyone at SFIT refers to us as the fearless gang. Led by me, of course." Fred puffed up his chest and pointed at himself. "Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Gogo and…" Fred's suddenly paused, the revelation Hiro had been waiting for finally dawning on him. "Wait, you want to include everyone except for Tadashi?"

Hiro nodded in confirmation.

"Why do you want to exclude Tadashi?" He asked in confusion.

"Because," Hiro paused for emphasis. "Our first mission will be to save Tadashi's life."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for the erratic nature of Hiro's thoughts at this stage. He is under a lot of pressure and after all his previous failures to save his brother has now begun to second guess himself all the time. I feel it is a natural progression considering what he has gone through and had to deal with and am hoping the gang will be able to get him back to normal with time.
> 
> PS: This story is now officially longer than my first one! XD XD XD


	36. Origin Story

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Guys. I hope you can forgive the really late update. I have just been overwhelmed. The chaos caused by the renovations at home combined with the upheaval caused by the death of someone close to the family have simply drained me and left me struggling to normalize once more. I don't know when things are going to settle but I have not forgotten you guys or this story.

**Origin Story**

Tick, tick, tick, tick, pop.

The sound of Gogo's chewing gum popping broke the awkward silence that had descended upon the room following Fred's rather wild recollection of the information Hiro had shared with him. As promised, the Otaku quickly managed to gather his small group of friends together. Excluding Tadashi of course. The moment everyone was gathered in his room, he launched into his tale, spilling every incredible detail with typical Otaku flare, not even giving a moment's thought to how ridiculous it may sound to someone that was not quintessentially a little crazy.

To be fair, his audience was not exactly the best example of sanity. Wasabi was more than a little OCD, his obsession bordering on debilitative. He was afraid of change, always needed a plan to get him going and would often freeze when faced with something that was outside of his comfort zone. Gogo was reckless, more interested in speed than safety. Her devil may care impulsive attitude was a complete contrast to Wasabi's over cautious approach and she often got herself in way over her head. If Hiro didn't know any better, he'd have thought she was just a touch suicidal but that was neither here nor there.

If anyone was sane, it would be Honey Lemon. Honey Lemon was… well… Honey Lemon, eternally optimistic and fixated on capturing every moment of her life on film. It didn't matter what situation she was in. She was always ready with cheerful words, quickly followed by flashing light as she faithfully documented their lives, almost as if she needed evidence to prove that she really was alive.

Wait…

Prove that she really was alive?

Come to think of it, maybe there was more to Honey Lemon than Hiro had ever realized.

"You want us to do what?" Gogo's exclamation shattered what remained of the silence, pulling Hiro's thoughts back to the situation at hand, disappointment coursing through him with the realization that, as expected, she didn't believe a word Fred was saying.

"Become Super Heroes." Fred replied oozing confidence, a wide grin spread across his features.

"Of all the crazy ridiculous schemes your nit witted brain has come up with thus far, this one takes the cake." Gogo leaped to her feet and marched over to poke Fred in the chest. "You want us to just drop everything we're doing so we can become some kind of crazy vigilante super hero group of kids to fight some imaginary villain just because Tadashi's little brother, if that's who he really is in the first place," Hiro cringed at the glare she directed at him before continuing with her rant, "told you he's a time traveler and needs our help?!"

Fred nodded, completely unfazed.

"Do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds?" Gogo demanded, taking a step back to cross her arms over her chest, alternating her glare between Fred and Hiro. The silence that followed her question only served to make her point for her.

Hiro bit his lip, his heart beating a rapid rhythm in his chest, fear and dismay coursing through him in waves. He knew it. This was a bad idea. What had he been thinking? It had been a bad idea to come here all along. There was no way any sane person would even consider what he was trying to tell them let alone believe it!

"That's it. I'm out of here." Gogo broke the silence once more, throwing her hands up in the air in exasperation. Turning heel she began to march towards the door radiating anger and displeasure for all to see.

Gogo didn't believe the story. To be fair, Hiro would not have believed it himself had he not lived it. Tadashi's friends, with the exception of Fred, were essentially scientists at heart and scientists didn't believe anything without some kind of hard evidence, be it formula's, replicable experiments or filmed documentation of unexplained phenomena that still required further investigation. No matter how he looked at things he needed some kind of proof and that was the crux of the entire matter. If he was being entirely truthful he would have to admit that he had no idea how the feat had been accomplished. He couldn't prove it mathematically and certainly couldn't replicate it. He couldn't even _control_ it! And the idea of running around with some kind of camera just to record the phenomenon was even more ludicrous. How did one film their own death and then carry the evidence back in time with them when they no longer had a corporeal form with which to do it? It simply wasn't possible. The only way to potentially accomplish something like that would be to convert the data into some kind of wireless signal and send it back in time to a device that could receive and record it thus keeping it in… tact…

Wait…

Wait just one minute…

Data…

Camera…

Baymax!

Baymax had a camera and he too had somehow managed to travel through time, keeping the data he had acquired up until the various points at which he had been lost in the portal.

Maybe, just maybe…

Suddenly hopeful, Hiro turned and raced over to Baymax's charging station. Skidding to a halt beside the red case he opened his mouth and took a deep breath, preparing to activate the healthcare companion…

"Is wanting to save my friends life, really ridiculous?"

Only to stop dead once more. Fred's words echoed through the room, the enormity of his simple statement stopping Gogo dead in her tracks. Taking a deep breath, she turned to face the Otaku.

Fred met her gaze, unflinching as he squared his shoulders and stubbornly lifted his chin, his cheerful demeanor gone. "Is wanting to save my friends life, really ridiculous?" He repeated, his tone echoing the challenge Gogo had thrown at him mere moments earlier.

Gogo frowned, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Who's life are we trying to save exactly?" She asked, the question cautious.

"Tadashi's." Fred opened his mouth to reply but it was not his voice that made the sound. The single word escaped Hiro's lips without his consent and filled the room with pain, anguish and grief. It was the first thing he'd said since the gang arrived, too afraid of the rejection he was now faced with to risk telling his tale himself, only he could remain silent no longer. Squaring his shoulders in a stance that echoed the one Fred had adopted, he raised his head and took a moment to really look at everyone in the room, opening himself up to their scrutiny in return.

"I'm asking you to help me save my brother's life." Hiro expanded, Fred's blind faith giving him back the courage he had somehow lost along the way. "I know you have no reason to believe me, let alone help me but you're all I have left. We were friends once and I hope that we can be friends again but even if we can't, even if our friendship is the price I have to pay… even if I lose everything I am and everything I will be, I want to save him. I want to save Tadashi and I can't…" Hiro paused to swallow back the tears that were gathering in the back of his throat. "I can't…"

I can't.

Although part of a sentence he had not yet managed to complete, those two words managed to echo through his mind, his failures in each timeline flashing before him. He'd tried. He'd tried everything he could think of to save his brother's life only to fail each time as the reality he was reaching for slipped ever further out of reach. He'd tried and failed and those two words seemed to only emphasize that failure even further only… only it wasn't over yet. He had one more chance, one more opportunity to do things differently and he wasn't going to waste it dwelling on his failures.

"I can't do it alone."

"Hiro, we want to help, but…" Honey Lemon looked around desperately, suddenly finding herself uncharacteristically at a loss for words.

"But this is just crazy." Wasabi interjected, picking up where Honey Lemon left off. "The concept of time travel, while scientifically plausible is just not realistically possible. No one has even come close to proving the theory let alone inventing something that could actually achieve it. Even if they did, it wouldn't be wise to change anything in the past. Just think of the ripple effect that would have on the very definition of existence itself. The dangers associated with such an act are simply mind blowing and it isn't something we should just casually consider messing with."

"I know." Hiro exclaimed, fighting the anguish brought on by Wasabi's words. Wasabi's caution was well justified. He knew that. His mind acknowledged it but his heart refused to accept it. He knew what messing with time could do but there had to be a reason for his presence here. There had to be a reason he had been sent back to this particular point in time with all his memories intact and the only tangible reason he could find was Tadashi. He was here, in a time where Tadashi was still alive and while he still had breath in his body, he refused to simply stand by and relive the tragedy that had occurred. "I know the dangers of messing with time more than you can even begin to imagine. I've lived it. I've been here before and each time done everything I could to change it only to have it all blow up in my face, over and over again but I'm not giving up. I'm not giving up on Tadashi and I'm not giving up on any of you."

_I'm not giving up on you._

"You really are Tadashi's kid brother, aren't you?" Hiro blinked and turned to face Honey Lemon in surprise.

"What?"

"I'm not giving up on any of you." Honey Lemon quoted shifting forward in her seat. "That sounds like something Tadashi would say."

"That's cause…" Hiro glanced away and ran an awkward hand through his hair. "It is." He dropped his hand and faced everyone once more. "It's something he told me when I couldn't think of any ideas for the SFIT showcase."

"The student showcase? You're thinking of attending SFIT?" Gogo shifted her weight onto her right leg and crossed her arms over her chest once more. "It's not that easy to get in you know. You'd have to come up with something that really blows Callaghan away just to stand a chance. What's a pipsqueak like you going to come up with?" Her tone was laced with heavy skepticism.

Hiro shook his head. "I'm not planning on attending SFIT. Not this time round, anyway."

"Not this time round?" Gogo scoffed. "Are you trying to imply you attended SFIT in one of those alternate timelines you claim to have lived through?"

"I'm not trying to imply anything." Hiro snapped, Gogo's abrasive attitude finally rubbing him the wrong way. "I'm merely stating facts. Whether you choose to believe them or not is your problem."

"Fine. Prove it then." Gogo retorted.

"Prove what?"

"Prove that we were friends."

And there it was. The request for evidence. Hiro glanced at Baymax's case as he spent a moment in contemplation, wondering where on earth to even begin.

"He knows us." Fred interjected, suddenly offering up assistance. "The little dude came here looking for me even though I've never told any of my friends where I live. He even knew where my room was. He knew I like comics and that I want someone to turn me into a fire breathing lizard and unlike you guys didn't even stare or comment on any of my awesome stuff which means he's obviously seen it before."

"No offense, Fred but you're not exactly the most reliable source when it comes to these things." Gogo retorted, blowing a bright pink bubble and popping it in the pauses between sentences. "Anyone that knows anything about you knows you're obsessed with comics and it only stands to reason that you would have an accompanying collection." She ran her eyes pointedly over his action figures. "Given the right _skill set,_ " The pointed manner in which she emphasized the words clearly communicated what kind of skills she was referring to, "your address could probably be tracked down using an internet search and the same can probably be said for the layout of your..."

"You went through a really severe scene phase in your freshman year of high school." Hiro said, cutting off the rest of Gogo's statement. "You dyed your hair bright blue, attempted to get a tattoo and wore so much tartan that, how did you put it again…" Hiro paused taking a moment to think back to the phrasing Gogo had used before continuing, "Oh yeah, you wore so much tartan that it looked like a Scotsman had thrown up all over you." Gogo's jaw dropped open. "Honey Lemon doesn't want anyone to know but she actually loves twilight." Honey Lemon squeaked. "She has every book and is secretly on team Jacob." Hiro pulled a face. "Really I don't even see how that's a thing but," He shrugged. "Oh well. And even though he hides it very well, Wasabi actually has a secret passion for coo…"

"We believe you! We believe you!" Wasabi exclaimed waving his arms in front of his face in sudden panic. "You can stop now!"

"…king." Hiro finished, the interruption coming too late to prevent him from spilling Wasabi's guilty pleasure.

"You like to cook?" Honey Lemon asked Wasabi in surprise.

"I like to take good care of myself and what better way to ensure that I receive the correct nutrients than to prepare my food myself?" Wasabi replied.

"With your OCD, that must take hours." Gogo commented dryly before turning back to Hiro. "Nice try kid. All that information really proves is that you've done your research. You're good. I'll give you that but you could have obtained all of that information by simply speaking to our family. So unless you have something more substantial to show us…"

Something more substantial. Hiro glanced at the familiar red case once more, wondering if his theory would prove true. If he considered his current track record, he should probably not even be contemplating the risk he was about to take but he had nothing more to lose. Baymax was his last chance.

He took a large breath and held it, taking a moment to prepare himself for the consequences of his actions before releasing it with a soft. "Ow."

The air was filled with the soft all too familiar sound of inflation, filling the familiar white vinyl as Tadashi's friends watched on in disbelief.

"Is that…"

"Baymax?"

"Hello Hiro."

"Hey, buddy." Hiro greeted the healthcare companion before turning back to face everyone else. "Meet Baymax. Tadashi's brainchild and his greatest achievement." Hiro smiled up at Baymax, a mixture of fondness and awe etched onto his features.

"Why do you have Baymax?" Gogo demanded, marching over to Hiro's side. "That's Tadashi's final year project. There no way Tadashi would just let you take him out of the lab before his final submission date. That project is like his child, he barely lets it out of his sight to eat and sleep. If you think I'm going to believe he just let you borrow it you're sorely mistak…"

"I stole him."

"en." Gogo blinked, momentarily stunned into silence before roaring. "You WHAT? Tadashi is going to _kill_ you when he finds out!"

"He's not going to kill me because he's not going to find out." Hiro retorted cockily.

"Of course he's going to find out." Gogo snapped. "Because; if he doesn't figure it out on his own; I'm going to tell him myself. Running off to go bot-fighting on your own is one thing but stealing your brother's final year project really takes this rebellious thing Tadashi claims is just a phase to a whole new level."

"Tadashi is not going to find out." Hiro repeated. "Because you're not going to tell him."

"And why, pray tell, am I not going to tell him?" Gogo demanded.

"Because you're going to help me save his life." Hiro replied softly, reaching out to rest a hand on Baymax's chest, externally exhibiting confidence he was far from feeling within. "Baymax, play back the moment we decided to create Big Hero 6." And with those words, he reached out for the last thread of hope that remained, silently praying that some proof of his relationship with the gang remained on Baymax's hard drive.

_"We don't know anything about him."_

_"His blood type is ab-negative. Cholesterol levels are..."_

_"Baymax, you scanned him?"_

_"I am programmed to assess everyone's healthcare needs."_

_"Yes! Ha ha. I can use the data from your scan to find him."_

_"Uh, You'd have to scan everyone in San Fransokyo and that might take... I don't know, forever."_

_"No, no, no, no. I... I just have to look for another angle... Got it! I'll scan the whole city at the same time. I just have to upgrade Baymax's sensor... Actually, if we're gonna catch this guy, I need to upgrade all of you."_

_"Upgrade who, now?"_

_"Those who suffer a loss require support from friends and loved ones."_

_"Oh, oh, Okay, I like where this is heading!"_

_"We can't go against that guy! We're nerds!"_

_"Hiro, we want to help, but we're just... us."_

_"No. You can be way more."_

_"Tadashi Hamada was our best friend. We're in."_

_"Can you feel it? You guys, do you feel this? Our origin story begins._ _We're gonna be superheroes!"_


	37. Sensibility

**Sensibility**

They believed him. The gang actually believed him. Okay so maybe not exactly believed but they were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and had agreed to give the super hero gig; as Gogo had dubbed it; a try and that was more than he'd actually hoped to achieve. Even though he had approached Fred with exactly that goal in mind, he hadn't actually thought he would succeed and was still in complete awe that he had. Which is why he completely missed the warning signals as he casually waltzed into the Lucky Cat café, a stupid grin still spread across his features.

"And where on earth do you think you're going?" Tadashi's voice stopped him in his tracks, just as he was about to ascend the stairs that led up to their home. Surprised by the thread of anger that they contained, Hiro cautiously turned to face his brother only to gulp when his eyes confirmed what his ears had already detected. Tadashi was pissed.

"Uh… to my room?" Hiro offered, subconsciously forgetting to include Tadashi in that possessive pronoun.

"Not before you give me a full breakdown on your whereabouts today, you're not." Tadashi retorted, crossing his arms with a scowl.

Since when did he have to report his every movement to his brother?

"I was, um…" Hiro glanced up his mind racing to find a reasonable explanation for his whereabouts, "hanging out with friends." He finished, deciding to go with the response that was technically true. Well, kinda. The gang _was_ going to be friends with him in the, not so distant, future.

Tadashi narrowed his eyes skeptically. "Since about four am this morning?"

Oh no. Don't tell me…

"I woke up early this morning only to find you gone." Yup, Tadashi's words only served to confirm Hiro's suspicion. "I've been driving around like a mad man looking for you. I managed to track down three, I repeat three," Tadashi held up three fingers in illustration, "illicit morning bot fights and didn't manage to find you at any of them. I then returned home hoping you'd come back while I was away only to find you _still_ missing. That was nine hours ago. It's now after four in the afternoon and I've missed all of my classes so I would really appreciate it if you could be so nice as to tell me where the hell you have been all this time because I've just spent those nine hours covering for you and lying to Aunt Cass."

Oh crap.

Way to go, bonehead. Why had he not taken into consideration the fact that his family might be worried if he disappeared for a few hours when he'd decided to put his plan into action early this morning? This was the last thing he needed right now, Tadashi doubting him just when he needed to be able to sneak off regularly for long periods of time.

"I, uh… I'm sorry." Hiro hung his head, stray strands of ebony hair falling forward onto his face as he put on the best act of penance that he had in his repertoire. "I should have told you I was going out but I was just so excited about finally having some friends that I could go hang out with that it didn't even occur to me." Hiro raised his head, large doe eyes already turned on full blast. "I didn't intend to stay out that long but before I knew it one thing led to another and by the time I realized how long I was away it was already too late."

"Cut the crap, Hiro." Tadashi retorted, not even remotely phased by an act he had seen far too many times before. "I know you don't have any friends. What were you really up to?"

Hiro winced, hurt coursing through him. Tadashi's comment stung. He knew his brother had good reason to believe that he had no friends as Hiro had always been antisocial. It was, after all, technically true on some level but it hurt to hear Tadashi say it. "Just because you haven't seen me hanging around with anyone doesn't mean I don't have friends!" Hiro couldn't help but retort, some of his inner hurt creeping into his tone.

The moment the words left his lips he regretted them along with the effect they had on Tadashi. The anger and disapproval on Tadashi's face fled in an instant, leaving behind an expression of sheer horror and regret. "Oh, Hiro. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you're incapable of making friends I just…" 

"It's true though." Hiro cut him off abruptly, too emotionally raw to deal with Tadashi's regrets along with the conflict that already filled the air. "As far as you know, I don't have any friends. I never did fit in after all. I've always been too smart for my own good. Too confrontational, too small, too arrogant, too cocky and too young." What had started off as an attempt to soothe Tadashi's hurt feelings suddenly spiraled out of control. "It always boils down to that, doesn't it? I'm always too young. Too young to have graduated, too young to attend college and fit in with the others, too young to understand 'adult'" Hiro added an air quote, "problems and too young to truly understand the consequences of my actions yet somehow I always have to deal with them. I always have to deal with things that I am technically too young for and when I don't manage to deal with them the way others would expect, I get judged for it. Don't you think that's a little hypocritical?"

Tadashi reached out to rest a hand on Hiro's shoulder only to wince and drop it back down to his side when Hiro took a step back in reaction. "Hiro, you need to understand. You're…" Tadashi sighed and ran a hand over his face. "You're not like other people. You can't expect to be treated like everyone else. I know it all seems hypocritical but just because you're intellectually advanced doesn't mean you're emotionally ready for all the implications your actions and decisions may have on your life. It's not this," Tadashi reached out once more and managed to rest his finger on Hiro's forehead, "that I'm worried about. It's this." Tadashi moved his hand to rest his finger on Hiro's chest, just above his heart.

Hiro glanced down at Tadashi's finger before looking back up to meet the concern in Tadashi's warm brown eyes. "You already broke that." Hiro replied softly, flickers of grief stirring back to life to mingle with the stress that had not left him from the moment he'd first travelled back in time.

Tadashi's eyes betrayed his shock, going wide before narrowing once more. Defense mechanism kicking in, he subconsciously slipped back into 'parenting' mode. "Explain."

He shouldn't have said it. Hiro knew he shouldn't have said it but he couldn't bring himself to regret it because whether he liked it or not, the truth was part of him actually blamed Tadashi. He blamed Tadashi for dying, for choosing to save Professor Callaghan over him and for indirectly making him relive all the agony of his loss over and over again simply by coming back to life when he should have just stayed dead and buried. Hiro shook his head. "Just forget I said I said anything."

Hiro turned away and took a step towards the stairs, intending to cut the conversation short only Tadashi was having none of it. "I'm not done with you yet, Hiro." He grabbed hold of Hiro's wrist and whirled him round so that they were face to face once more. "You're not going anywhere until you explain, clearly, in words that I can understand. How did I hurt you?"

"It doesn't matter." Hiro replied, his tone dead.

"Why must you be so bloody stubborn?" Tadashi snapped, grabbing hold of both his shoulders to shake him. "Of course it matters! How do you expect me to change or even explain my behavior when you won't even tell me what I'm doing wrong?"

"I CAN'T!" Hiro yelled back, the outcry echoing through the café as they suddenly became the center of attention. Hiro froze, eyes darting around the room in sudden panic.

Oh no! No, no, no, no, no. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. His problems were not meant to be aired out in public for everyone dining at the Lucky Cat Café to see. Yet here he was, suddenly faced with a sea of eyes and silence in the air as everyone held their breaths, waiting for his next outburst, waiting for him to break, waiting for him to fall apart and all he could do was stand there, frozen in terror, his breath short as panic swelled in to take over his mind.

Do something. Just do something. Don't just stand there and stare. Move, Run. Leave before things go even further downhill, only…

Only he couldn't. He was frozen, stuck in limbo, heart beating a rapid rhythm in his chest, blood roaring in his ears all while his concentration shifted, people's faces swimming in and out of focus only to suddenly disappear behind a beige wall and family photographs. That was the moment he realized he was in fact moving, stumbling over stairs, his slim wrist encased in a large warm hand as it pulled him away from prying ears and all too curious sight.

The moment he stepped into the landing he was swept into Tadashi's arms and embraced, the familiar scent of soldered circuits and warm baked goods surrounding him with comfort and care. "Tell me." Tadashi whispered, his breath shifting the strands of hair just above Hiro's right ear. "Please tell me what happened so I can help." He begged, his voice betraying his sudden surge of desperation. "You've changed, grown far too quickly and I'm too terrified to even speculate what may have happened to you to cause it. You're hurting. I can see you're hurting and I'm sorry. I'm sorry I don't know what's going on. I'm sorry you don't feel you can tell me. I'm sorry I don't know how to help you but most of all I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you."

I'm sorry I wasn't there to protect you.

And therein lay the crux of Hiro's problem. He'd always taken Tadashi for granted. He'd relied on him to always be there, to always know the right thing to say or the right thing to do to make things better. He'd lived his life with reckless abandon, innocently convinced that Tadashi would always be there to protect him, even from himself and when Tadashi had died he'd lost that. He'd lost both his confidence and his innocence and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't forget that. Tadashi's death had changed him and even though he now had the opportunity to change the outcome of that traumatic event, he'd never be able to go back to who he had been before it.

How could he explain it? How could he even begin to tell Tadashi the truth when there was so much at stake, when Tadashi's very existence hung in the balance. He'd tried. He'd told his brother the truth before and it hadn't ended well. Tadashi had doubted his sanity and in the end had died protecting him anyway. He couldn't risk it. He just couldn't risk the possibility that everything would fall apart again. Not when things finally seemed to be going right so he simply chose to remain silent, clinging tightly to his brother, leaving Tadashi's questions unanswered.

As expected, Tadashi did not push, simply returning the embrace for a long moment before calmly changing the topic of conversation. "They're not hurting you are they?"

Hiro glanced up, blinking dubiously.

"The friends you hung out with today." Tadashi expanded. "They're not doing anything or making you do anything you're uncomfortable with, are they?"

Hiro shook his head. "No. They're good people but then again you already know that."

"I do?" Tadashi frowned, confusion swirling in his eyes.

Tadashi, understandably, had absolutely no idea what Hiro was going on about. A sudden mischievous smile crossed Hiro's lips, a stray strand of glee chasing away his earlier melancholy. "Yeah, you do." He deliberately left his response vague, enjoying the power rush that coursed through him with the knowledge that he knew something his brother didn't. It wasn't often Tadashi was put off balance and it was a situation Hiro simply couldn't resist taking full advantage of. Okay, so maybe Tadashi was right to believe that Hiro wasn't exactly emotionally mature.

"Do I know them?" Tadashi asked, his sharp mind quickly beginning to put the pieces of the puzzle together.

"Yup."

Tadashi blinked in disbelief. "Seriously? I know them?"

"Yup." Hiro confirmed, grin spread broadly across his features.

"It's not any of your old school classmates, is it?" Tadashi asked skeptically, the words half-statement, half-question.

"Nope." Hiro shook his head with a sudden scowl. "They were a bunch of idiots and I don't associate with idiots."

"Yeah, I thought not. Someone from the Lucky Cat Café then?"

Hiro shook his head.

"Okay it's not anyone you met at school or at home." Tadashi continued to frown, the lines on his forehead threatening to become a permanent feature. "I'm officially stumped."

"Really? You can't think of anyone else?" Hiro teased playfully.

Tadashi shook his head.

"No one at all?" Hiro continued, dragging the moment out for all it was worth.

Tadashi shook his head again.

"Seriously?" Hiro quirked an eyebrow. "No one?"

"Come one, Hiro." Tadashi finally exclaimed in exasperation. "Stop messing with me. Just put me out of my misery already. Who did you hang out with today?"

"Fred."

Tadashi blinked and Hiro waited for his brother's brain to reboot after crashing as a result of the unexpected parameter Hiro and input into it. And in five, four, three, two… "Fred?!" Tadashi exclaimed in disbelief.

Hiro nodded.

"As in my Fred?"

Hiro nodded again.

"Where on earth did you manage to bump into Fred?" Tadashi demanded, still trying to understand how Hiro could have met someone Tadashi had not yet had the opportunity to introduce him to.

Now for the _really_ entertaining part.

Hiro's eyes sparkled, his naturally exuberant personality coming to the fore in reaction to Tadashi's incredulity. Tadashi was going to, insert sarcasm here, _loooooove_ his response. So much so Hiro was probably never going to hear the end of it but it was soooo going to be worth it because there was nothing better in the world than Tadashi's stunned, incredulous expression and Hiro was getting access to that in spades. "At his house." He casually declared before silently beginning his count down once more.

And in five, four, three, two…

"You bumped into Fred at his house? How on earth did you manage that? Wait, you know where Fred lives?!"

Hiro smirked. Yup, Tadashi's reaction was every bit as entertaining as he thought it would be and there was no better response that he could give it than silence. Tadashi was more than capable of making the connections for himself and would ask the right question sooner or later.

Tadashi scowled. "Hiro, what did you do?"

And there it was. The right question. The one that would allow Hiro to play this situation up just a little more. He shrugged. "I tracked down Fred's address and went to there to introduce myself to him."

And in five, fo…

"HIRO!" Oh, never mind. _That_ explosion came a little sooner than expected but no matter. It was still within acceptable range. "What on earth possessed you to do something like that?!"

"You're always telling me how awesome your friends are and I figured I'd go see for myself." Hiro offered in explanation.

"You decided to go see for yourself?" Tadashi repeated in a dead calm tone before exploding once more, waving his hands around in exasperation. "You can't do that Hiro! You can't track peoples addresses down and then just show up at their front door! That's illegal. The correct approach would have been to ask me to introduce you to him, following which you could ask _him_ to provide his address to you and _only then_ can you pitch at his front door. Assuming you communicated your intent to come over _first,_ that is."

"I thought we'd already established I'm socially awkward." Hiro pointed out, not even remotely phased by Tadashi's outburst. It was, after all, the reaction he'd been aiming for. It was far simpler to have Tadashi obsess over his social faults than to have him driving himself crazy trying to imagine the various traumatic scenarios that could explain the rather drastic change in Hiro that he had already detected.

"There's socially awkward and then there's just plain stupid. Seriously, bonehead, what were you thinking?"

Hiro shrugged once more. "You're always telling me about your friends and I thought Fred sounded like a really interesting guy."

"He is." Tadashi confirmed before reaching up to run a hand over his face. "He really is but…" Tadashi sighed, momentarily at a loss for words before clearly deciding to just let the matter drop. "So, how did he take your unexpected visit?"

Hiro grinned, the end goal nearly in his grasp. "He was actually really cool about it. He immediately figured out I was your younger brother." Hiro pulled a face. "Apparently I look like you or something. He then dragged me into his house and proceeded to ply me with comic book references all while dramatically acting out half of what he said. He's quite the character, a little bit strange but full of heart."

Tadashi nodded, a fond smile slipping onto his face. "Yeah, Fred's a good guy."

Nearly there, you're nearly there, Hamada. Careful. Don't mess it up now. "So…" Deep breath, Hiro, just breathe. Don't let Tadashi know how important this question is because you're only going to end up back at square one. Just keep it casual and keep breathing. "You won't mind if I hang out with him again, then?"

Breathe…

In and out.

Wait for it. Surely Tadashi won't suspect a thing.

Tadashi frowned…

Hiro's breath caught in the back of his throat.

…And carefully considered Hiro's question before bursting into a grin. "Mind? Of course I don't mind. The manner in which you chose to introduce yourself to him aside, I actually think, no wait, scratch that, I don't think, I know I approve."

Achievement unlocked! Hiro had successfully acquired an alibi for the time he would soon spend putting plan 'Big Hero 6 to the Rescue: Tadashi Edition' into action. Okay, so maybe he needed to work on the mission name but hey, he couldn't be a genius all the time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter… I really don't know what to say. The first half was just so so RAW. It actually hurt to write. Fortunately for my heart, the mood lightened considerably in the second half. Hope you guys liked it. Thank you for all your kind words and understanding.


	38. Tadashi: Implicit Memory

**Tadashi: Implicit Memory**

Fire, amber flames mocked him from all around, flickering and dancing to a rhythm he couldn't hear. It was primal, mesmerizing and as old as time. Fire had always existed, always reigned supreme, wild, untamed and free as it devoured everything in its path and he couldn't help but feel small. He was surrounded, trapped in a blazing inferno that grew ever larger with each small breath he took and he was powerless to do anything to stop it. He knew, he knew, with irrefutable certainty that it was coming for him, creeping ever closer, ravenous and unforgiving but still he watched, disbelief and confusion swirling around in his mind as he desperately tried to figure out how he'd gotten here.

It didn't make sense. Nothing made sense. Not the flames, not his surroundings, not the weight in his arms and not the grief in his heart. It simply did not compute.

_Hiro!_

The showcase building was burning. Wait, what was he doing in the showcase building? He didn't recall coming here. His eyes flickered around the room, taking in the shadows of experiments he did not recognize, each silhouette appearing in stark contrast to the flickering flames that surrounded him. He shouldn't be here. His mind clearly told him he couldn't be here yet he couldn't deny what his eyes were telling him. He was here, alone, surrounded by burning experiments and falling ash.

_Tadashi! No!_

Something flickered into motion, a slim silhouette running towards him, arm stretched out in desperation. It too did not make sense. Wasn't he supposed to be alone? No wait, that wasn't right either. He hadn't started off as alone. He'd run in looking for… looking for?

_I'm looking for you, bonehead._

BANG!

The thought was gone before he had a chance to truly register it and its implications, chased away by an all too familiar sound that, like everything else, also did not belong. It couldn't possibly be real. He knew that sound. He'd heard it more times than he had bothered to count but it had never been real. Not when it had come off of a TV or theater screen.

A gunshot.

It was the sound of a gun releasing a deadly bullet and he could do nothing but stand hopelessly by as it swiftly changed the very meaning of his life.

_Hiro! No!_

It wasn't real. None of this could possibly be real.

Heat.

The heat was growing at an incredible pace. He was burning. His skin, his eyes and the very air that he breathed but he couldn't bring himself to care. His world was falling apart, shattered beyond recognition by that single sound that had left a wasteland in his chest.

_It's okay, Hiro. I've got you._

The world was burning and he could taste it now, the ash in the air.

_I've got you. We'll get out of here and then everything's going to be okay._

It was hard, hard to breath, hard to think and hard to carry on moving, the weight in his arms dragging him down but he couldn't let go. He had to move, escape, find the exit before it was too late.

_I'm not leaving you._

He couldn't abandon the precious burden in his arms in favor of fleeing eminent death alone.

_I'll find it. It's here. All I have to do is look for another angle._

Only those words were a lie. The building began to crumble all around, burning beams tumbling to the ground, stirring ever more ash, dust and poison into the air. He wouldn't find it. Not the exit or a new angle. Not when there was nothing left to find.

_It's … too late._

It was too late. Too late to figure it out, too late to save himself and too late to save the slim figure in his arms.

_Dashi… I am… Rattle, cough, rattle… Satis…fied with my…care._

It was Hiro. The weight in his arms was Hiro, his small frame lying broken, his chest soaked in crimson blood and all Tadashi could do was stare at him in horror. Hiro was right. It was too late. Hiro's warm brown eyes were empty and cold and the only sign of life that remained was the hash reflection of amber flames that continued to dance in Hiro's eyes almost as if taunting him with their presence.

Hiro was dead, his body but a broken shell in Tadashi's blood soaked arms. He'd already taken his last breath and with it Tadashi's reason for living.

Tadashi fell, crumbling to his knees, shock, agony and grief tearing him apart from within even as his mind fought to reject the reality before him. It wasn't real. None of this could possibly be real only… it was. It had to be. There was no denying what his senses were telling him. He could see it; he could see Hiro's lifeless body in his arms. He could feel the weight of it, the warm sticky blood on his skin. He could smell the burning building, the poison gas that reached into his lungs and could even hear the flickering flames and the echo of the gunshot, that single bang that had changed everything in but an instant. But most of all he could taste it, he could taste the grief and the ash and the salty tears…

Hiro was dead and there was nothing he could do to change it.

Pulling Hiro's limp body close, he curled in around it, agony tearing him apart from within, ripping his heart out even as it robbed him of his ability to breathe.

Dead.

Denial waged war with disbelief, his mind at war with his heart and soul.

His baby brother was dead.

Racing to find a way to fix this, to turn back time and change the outcome, find another angle because this couldn't be his reality. This couldn't be the reality he was supposed to live with, not when he'd dedicated his whole life to keeping that single promise he'd made to his parents when he was still too young to truly understand its implications: _I'll protect him. I'll keep him safe. I'll always be by his side. I promise. Together we can overcome anything._

It wasn't supposed to end like this. His baby brother wasn't supposed to die.

_I'm looking for you, bonehead._

Not like this.

_Just hold on there, okay? We'll get you out of here and to a hospital. They'll fix you right up. Just don't die on me._

Not in a burning building, his slim form cradled in Tadashi's arms.

_I've got you. We'll get out of here and then everything's going to be okay._

_It's … too late._

_HIRO!_ The single word reverberated through the space, filled with agony, grief and sheer hopelessness, amber flames looming higher and higher before suddenly vanishing from sight.

_\- BH6 - BH6 - BH6 –_

Tick… tick… tick… tick… tick… tick… tick.

The soft ticking of the clock took a long time to register as Tadashi's mind struggled to comprehend yet another sudden situational shift that simply refused to make sense. Where was he? Where was the burning building? Was he dead? Is this what heaven looked like? It was kind of a disappointment. It was strangely familiar and looked remarkably like the room he shared with Hiro.

Wait…

The room he shared with Hiro?

Tadashi leaped out of bed, sweat soaked sheets falling unnoticed to the ground as he rushed past a familiar screen to the other side of the room, his heart beating an anxious rhythm in his chest. Please… please oh please… oh please…

Pale moonlight filtered in through the partially open blinds, revealing a tangled mess of sheets, pillows, partially completed bots and scattered pages, sprinkled across Hiro's bed.

His heart stopped.

Empty.

Hiro's bed was empty, his sheets twisted in a single lump on the right side of his bed.

Tadashi leaped into motion once more, panic and fear driving him out of the room and into the rest of the house, desperately searching for a familiar figure, hoping to be greeted by an all too cheeky grin and cocky attitude.

He had to be here. Hiro had to be here somewhere. The fire and gunshot had to be a dream. There simply was no reality that could lead to such a thing after all. What would Hiro be doing in the SFIT showcase building anyway? He wasn't interested in 'Nerd School'. It would have been another matter altogether if his dream had been about Hiro dying in a bot fight but it wasn't.

Tadashi ran out of the kitchen, through the living room and back up the stairs intending to check their bathroom before returning to their room to grab some clothes.

Hiro had to be out somewhere. He had snuck out the previous evening after all. Tadashi had spent several hours searching for him and several more waiting for him to return home only to find out Hiro had been hanging out with Fred of all people. Seriously, what on earth had possessed him to look up Fred like that? That was the last thing Tadashi remembered. Before the nightmare about the fire that is. Surely he had not suffered some kind of injury that had led him to forget the events that followed Hiro's rather unexpected announcement that he was now friends with Fred? Surely it was just a dream, just a figment created by his overworked and exhausted mind in reaction to the stress of not knowing where Hiro had been all day and not a result of his mind finally replaying a memory he may have blocked out in reaction to the trauma of watching his baby brother die.

Surely…

Tadashi stumbled to a halt just as he entered their room once more, the relief that coursed through him almost as palatable as his earlier grief had been. The sight that met his gaze completely washed his doubt and panic away. Hiro was still in the room. He'd somehow managed to fall out of his bed and was sprawled across the floor, fast asleep, his left foot still caught on his bed. The sight was as ridiculous as it was endearing and Tadashi couldn't stop the nervous chuckled that escaped him, as he raised a trembling hand to run it over his face in a bid to gather his senses once more.

A dream.

Everything was just a really bad dream.

Hiro was alive and well, sprawled on the floor like the adorable dork that he was. It figured that he was still fast asleep, completely oblivious to Tadashi's plight and conveniently out of sight when viewed from Tadashi's side of the room. What right did the bonehead have to worry him like that? Seriously?

Tadashi dropped his hand and walked up to Hiro. Arriving at his brother's side, he knelt down and gathered the slim form into his arms only to freeze in place. The same, the weight in his arms was exactly the same as it had been in the dream. Not heavier or lighter.

Shaking off the fear that had coursed through him with the realization, he stood, using the motion to carefully deposit his brother back in bed. Pale moonlight illuminated Hiro's face, ebony strands of hair shifting with each breath Hiro took emphasizing just how small and innocent his baby brother looked.

He wasn't ready.

Tadashi wasn't ready for his brother to grow up and he sure as hell wasn't ready for him to die.

Reaching out with a still trembling hand Tadashi brushed stray strands of hair off of Hiro's face, the torn whisper that escaped his lips echoing in the silence between them.

"Don't you dare die on me."

A soft breeze filtered through the room and carried his words away, the night stars seeming to flicker for but a moment before resuming to their cold watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is shorter than the usual ones but it's not an actual chapter, it's a bonus chapter written to give you guys insight into Tadashi's perspective at this point in time. I originally planned to write this from Hiro's perspective and wanted him to wake up to see Tadashi watching him after having woken up from the nightmare but for some reason it just didn't feel right. So I decided to just give in and write it from Tadashi's perspective in order not to lose this moment.


	39. Coalition

**Coalition**

"Let's get this show on the road." Hiro exclaimed as he rushed into the room Fred had reserved as their not-so-secret base. The gang had decided that it may be better to run the entire operation from Fred's house seeing as it would probably be easier to hide their activities from Tadashi if they were not doing them in the Lucky Cat's garage. Fred had pounced on the idea with a vengeance and had promptly ordered Heathcliff to clear the biggest room in the house to make space for a makeshift lab. The room that he cleared was three times as large as the garage and every bit as private making Hiro wonder why in all the years that they had worked as a Super Hero team, they had not thought of that before.

Nostalgia probably had something to do with it. Working from the Lucky Cat's garage had subconsciously provided Hiro with a connection to his dead older brother and he guessed the others had probably picked up on that sentiment and simply let the matter lie. Not that it mattered at this stage. "Wasabi, did you bring your toolkit?" Hiro, twisted and dropped the backpack he was carrying onto what would from now on be known as his work space, turning around to meet everyone's gaze.

"I have it right here." Wasabi confirmed, moving to the side to reveal a desk already covered in perfectly aligned tools.

Hiro's lips quirked into a smile at the sight. Figures Wasabi would already have everything neatly arranged. Nodding in approval he then turned to Honey Lemon quirking his eyebrows up in surprise when he realized that she too had been busy since their meeting the previous day. Her desk was also ready to go, already covered with a large assortment of chemistry equipment. "I see you've managed to finish setting up. Anything I can help with?"

Honey Lemon shook her head, taking a few steps back. Lifting her phone, she posed, raising her fingers into a quick 'V' as she snapped a 'quick' selfie before replying. "No, I think I have everything I need for now. Ooooo," She tapped her feet in glee. "This is so exciting!"

Hiro shook his head in amusement, the smile on his lips growing marginally broader before turning once more, only to stop when he spotted familiar leggings sticking out from beneath yet another desk. "Uh… Gogo?" Hiro frowned, taking a few steps towards her "What are you doing?" He couldn't help but ask.

Gogo peered out from beneath the desk, giving Hiro a look.

Hiro returned her stare, unfazed. He'd grown rather immune to it during the time they had spent together and even though she no longer had any recollection of it, he still did.

Pop.

Point one: Hamada.

Gogo blew a bubble and popped it before replying. "I'm installing magnetic wheels beneath all our desks. Will make things a lot easier if we have to move things around in a hurry and knowing Fred," She paused to glare at the Otaku that was casually occupying a couch in the corner, comic book already in hand, "we'll probably need to move things around a lot. _Someone_ tends to forget that some of the experiment's we're working on can actually be _dangerous_."

Fred, completely ignored her. That was not surprising, really. Fred was especially thick skinned when it came to these sorts of things. What was surprising though, was the sheer calmness of his reaction as he calmly continued to read. If Hiro didn't know any better, he'd swear someone had switched places with the Otaku but he did know better. Fred, wasn't nearly as calm as he appeared to be. He was simply pretending, waiting… Now to figure out what it was that he was waiting for.

Hiro glanced around the room, silently taking inventory. Fred was sprawled on the couch, head resting on its right arm and legs hanging off the left. A large stack of comic books was placed neatly beside him. Located just to his left was the large 3D printer he'd promised he would acquire. Gogo was back under her desk. Wasabi had returned to organizing his and Honey Lemon was already throwing chemicals into her flasks. It was all very neat and orderly and nothing appeared to be out of place. That is until he looked for… "Um, guys, I hate to break this great working vibe you all have going here but where's Baymax?"

"See, I told you he'd notice." Fred exclaimed, leaping to his feet and dropping his comic book to the ground. "The little dude is seriously attached to the walking marshmallow. I told you it wasn't a good idea to…"

"Fred, shut up." Gogo snapped, cutting Fred off mid rant.

Fred stilled and a heavy silence suddenly descended upon the room. It was so thick Hiro could swear he could almost hear a pin drop and he knew, he just _knew_ he wasn't going to like the answer. "Gogo, what did you guys do?" Hiro asked, his terse controlled tone hiding a plethora of emotion as he broke the oppressive silence.

"I took him back to the lab." Gogo replied, remaining hidden beneath her desk.

Hiro's heart dropped. "You what?"

"I took him back to Tadashi's lab." Gogo repeated, sliding out from beneath her desk.

"Why?" Hiro asked, his mind still trying to process and make sense of the statement. It hurt. He felt betrayed and abandoned and suddenly very alone and for the life of him he couldn't make sense of it… of any of it.

He jumped, whirling suddenly around when someone placed a hand gently onto his shoulder, wild brown eyes taking in the sympathetic expression Honey Lemon was directing his way. "We're only trying to help, Hiro. Even though we don't know what to believe, we know you're only trying to save Tadashi from some unknown threat that you're clearly not ready to share with us yet. We know you want us all to become heroes so we can achieve that but we don't think stealing your brother's final year project is the correct way to go about it."

Honey Lemon paused inadvertently giving Fred just enough time to add his two cents to the conversation. "I'd like to take this moment to declare that I was against their idea from the very start." Fred spoke, raising his arm up into the air all while bouncing up and down in agitation.

"Fred, seriously, just give us time to explain our reasoning before you barge in and make things worse." Gogo snapped once more, directing a heated glare directly at the Otaku.

"Peace, people, peace." Fred raised both arms up into the air. "We should all be able to express how we feel and I happen to feel that you guys," he waved an arm about indicating, Wasabi, Gogo and Honey Lemon, "shouldn't have done what you did without first consulting with the little dude."

"Fred…" Gogo began to roll up her sleeves.

"Gogo! It's okay!" Honey Lemon exclaimed and rushed forward to stand between Gogo and Fred, arms raised in a placating gesture. "Fred, like you, also has a right to voice his opinion and even though we may disagree with him, we should at least hear him out."

"Fine. Do what you want." Gogo turned away from Fred and Honey Lemon, turning to face Hiro once more. "We took Baymax back because we don't think it's fair to make Tadashi worry about his final year project. He's got more than enough to worry about as it is." Gogo's look turned pointed as she ran her gaze up and down Hiro's slim form. "With good reason it seems. We don't need to add the stress of having to redo a stolen project from scratch to his load. We can fetch Baymax again once everything is ready."

How could she? How could they? How could Gogo and the gang just take Baymax away from him like that? They had ruined all his hard work in one foul swoop. He'd gone to so much trouble to sneak Baymax out, had risked life and limb… Okay so maybe life and limb was exaggerating it a bit but he had certainly risked Tadashi's wrath. He'd nearly gotten caught by security for crying out loud and all for nothing. What right did they have to undo everything he'd accomplished like that? What right did Gogo have to take Baymax back to Tadashi's lab just because she thought it wasn't fair to have Tadashi stress over redoing…

_Are you okay?_

_No. I'm not okay. Someone stole my final year project and I have to rebuild it from scratch. I've just spent all day dealing with my professors, security and the police. I'm sorry Hiro, but I won't have as much time to help you with your showcase project as I had hoped. Though why anyone would want to steal him, I'll never know._

Just because she thought it wasn't fair that Tadashi…

_I'm sorry._

Gogo was… Gogo was…

_It's not your fault._

_Yes, it is._

Gogo was right. Hiro hung his head as the last remnants of conflicted emotion faded away leaving him filled with guilt instead. He shouldn't have done it. He had no right to steal Baymax, not then and certainly not now. Baymax belonged to Tadashi and it was rather selfish to place extra strain on his brother just because Hiro wanted someone around to affirm that he was still, on some level, sane. This was _his_ problem. Not Tadashi's and as such he needed to solve it on his own. More or less, that is.

Hiro squared his shoulders and glanced up at the gang once more. "Okay, we'll fetch Baymax once everything is ready." He relented, giving in before turning to press his computer's power button. The soft whirr of his machine booting up, quickly filled the space and he sank into his chair, ignoring the eyes still on him. Weaving his fingers into one another he stretched his arms forward, the bones in his knuckles cracking just as the boot sequence completed. "Let's get cracking." He declared, pun fully intended as he plastered a fake grin onto his face to hide the disappointment and loneliness still lingering in his heart.

The others quickly scurried away to resume the tasks they were busy with. Everyone that is, except for Fred… "Seriously? We're just going to leave it here?"

"Fred…" Honey Lemon glanced at Hiro, her voice filled with concern. He noticed but ignored her, pretending to be engrossed in something on his screen. "I think it's probably best that we drop it." The fact that he hadn't moved to open any files, however, gave him away.

"Better for him or better for you?" Fred demanded tapping a foot in agitation.

Hiro tensed unable to hide his instinctive reaction to the argument. It was very unlike Fred. The Otaku usually just ignored any conflict that surrounded him in favour of joking around and lightening the mood.

"Hiro?" Honey Lemon prompted, picking up on his tension.

"It's fine." Hiro said shortly. He didn't need it. He didn't need her sympathy or pity. That's not why he was here after all. They had bigger things to worry about and didn't really they time to waste babying his hurt pride.

Honey Lemon glanced at Fred. "Maybe Fred's right." She relented. "We should probably talk." She turned back to face Hiro.

He ignored her, moving his mouse to open a random file, staring blankly at the text that was promptly displayed, his mind still racing. He had to acknowledge that it really was the most logical thing to do. Technically he didn't _need_ Baymax, not until the showcase that is and Tadashi didn't _need_ the extra stress but Hiro still wanted him… Wanted to hear that robotic voice reprimand him every time he didn't take good care of himself, wanted to be able to cuddle against the warm soft vinyl and most off all wanted someone that was just willing to listen, to be there for him even at times when he gave in to a sudden urge to just act like a complete spoiled brat with a reckless streak a mile wide.

"Hiro?" Honey Lemon tried again, prompting him for a reaction when he made no move to give her one.

Pop. "Just leave him." Gogo said. "He said it's fine."

It was fine… It had to be. Things were better this way.

"But…"

Honey Lemon fell silent in favor of watching him. He could feel it. The pity in her gaze weighing heavy on his skin. She felt sorry for him and he didn't need it. It was the right thing to do. The logical thing. The scientific approach.

"Gogo's right. Okay?" Hiro once again broke the silence that had descended upon the room. "I shouldn't have stolen Baymax. It was a thoughtless move on my part. I just wanted… I just wanted…" He too allowed his sentence to trail off, not really sure what he wanted anymore.

"You wanted?" Honey Lemon prompted him softly once more bringing the spotlight right back onto him.

He wanted? What was it that he'd wanted? He wanted… Baymax, plain and simple. "I just wanted someone to believe me, okay? Someone to prove that I'm actually here, that all of this is actually real and I'm not locked away in some asylum somewhere drugged so far out of my mind that I need to create a fictional world just to feel like I'm alive." The words spilled out before he could even begin to really process them and their never meaning, hitting him every bit as hard as everyone else. Baymax, it seemed, was more closely connected to his definition of sanity than he'd realized.

"Oh, Hiro." Honey Lemon rushed over to him. Reaching his side, she turned his chair and knelt down in front of him so that they were face to face, pure sympathy on her face. "Of course you're alive. We're sorry. We really should have spoken to you first before taking Baymax back like that, right guys?" She looked up and it was at that moment that Hiro noticed he was surrounded. Wasabi stood on his right and moved to rest a hand on Hiro's shoulder in a silent show of support. Fred crowded in from behind and Gogo… well Gogo was on Honey Lemon's left, about two steps away from invading her space, trying really hard to look uninterested.

It was in that moment that Hiro realized they cared. Even though they didn't really know him yet, they cared about his feelings and that brought home the further realization that even though Baymax would temporarily be away from his side, Hiro was in fact _not_ as alone as he thought he was.

A shy smile slipped onto his face and he reached up to wipe away a few stray tears. "Thanks guys." He said, trying in those two words, to express the true gratitude he felt towards them. "But Gogo really is right. Tadashi doesn't need any additional stress. Just this morning I nearly killed myself tripping over him as I got out of bed."

Honey Lemon blinked. "You tripped over Tadashi? How'd you manage that?"

"He's not exactly small." Wasabi added, speaking up for the first time since answering Hiro's question earlier.

Hiro chuckled, wiping away another tear. Damnit, what was _wrong_ with him? Why was he crying when he actually felt all warm and fuzzy inside for a change? "The bonehead was sleeping on the floor beside my bed. Here I was, innocently getting out of it like I usually do and all of a sudden, wham," Hiro clapped his hands in demonstration. "I was on the floor, one leg still tangled in my sheets, the other stuck in Tadashi's pyjama top and the rest of me sprawled across his chest. The look on his face was priceless." Hiro laughed. "He looked like he'd been hit by a truck. It was so funny. He didn't appreciate my sense of humor though. He tackled me and tickled me in revenge." Hiro pulled a face. "I couldn't even get away. It's so unfair. Why must he be so much bigger than me."

"It's called puberty." Wasabi informed him. "You'll grow too. Just give it time."

"That's what they all say." Hiro said with a dramatic sigh. "But not everyone gets that lucky. I'm already fourteen and look at me." He indicated his own slim form. "Nothing, nada, nani mo. Not everyone is as blessed as you and Tadashi. Someone of us just have to make do with our skinny waif like forms." He pouted genuinely sulking because he knew there was no hope for him. At sixteen he would be every bit as slim and waif like as he currently was, give or take a few measly centimeters of height that is. Some people were just luckier in the gene department than others.

"There's nothing wrong with being skinny." Fred interjected. "Not when we can just blast ourselves with a gamma bomb so we can change into strong muscled warriors at will. It worked for Bruce Banner so it can work for us."

Gogo rolled her eyes and popped her gum once more. "Well this conversation has gone south." She commented dryly turning to head back to her desk. "I'll be at my desk if anyone needs me."

"Have fun." Fred waved at her before turning back to Hiro. "You can do that right?" He bounced up and down in excitement. "Invent a gamma bomb that can turn us into the hulk? How awesome would that be?"

"Fred, seriously, that's not science." Honey Lemon interjected.

"Yeah, and I guess the shrink ray I asked Wasabi for isn't _science_ either. Is it?" Fred demanded.

"Nope." Wasabi confirmed.

"Then how about…"

Hiro zoned out the all too familiar conversation and turning to face his PC once more, his mind and heart no longer in turmoil.


	40. Sanity Check

**Sanity Check**

Hiro was seated at the kitchen table lost in thought as he contemplated the plan they had all come up with. Gogo, Wasabi and Honey Lemon all felt that the best approach would be to follow his original timeline as closely as possible. Wasabi felt it would probably not be a good idea to disrupt the time space continuum too much while Honey Lemon and Gogo felt that it would help them predict future events more accurately thus making it easier to change the single event they were _really_ trying to change. Ultimately he was back at square one and he didn't really know how he felt about that. After all, he'd tried this plan before with little to no success. The idea of recreating the original timeline yet again left him more than a little nervous. Then again, there _was_ one really important key difference this time round. This time round he was not doing it alone.

He stared at the flyer in his hands, butterflies fluttering around in his stomach and took in the all too familiar information.

SAN FRANSOKYO INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

SFIT SHOWCASE

CALL FOR ENTRIES

For more information please visit: www.sfit.edu

The words on the page almost seemed to mock him, a stark reminder of that fateful event that had led to his brother's death not once, not twice but three times already and here he was actually contemplating taking part in it _again_. In what universe was this even a good idea? He bit his lip absently beginning to hum a nervous tune, still fighting to convince himself to go through with it all.

"Hey, bonehead." Tadashi greeted, stepping into the kitchen, arriving home after spending a long day working on his projects at SFIT.

"Hmm." Hiro paused his tune just long enough to hum in acknowledgement before resuming the nervous tone.

"You okay?" Tadashi paused in the middle of reaching into a kitchen cabinet to pull out a coffee mug and turned to face Hiro in concern.

"I'm fine." Hiro replied shortly, not really paying attention. He nervously began to tap his fingers on the table, now glaring at the offending flyer that lay before him.

"What are you doing?" Tadashi leaned over to take a look and froze. His next words were strained. "You're thinking of entering the SFIT showcase?"

Hiro glanced up, the tension in Tadashi's statement grabbing his attention more than the statement itself. He opened his mouth to confirm only to suddenly change his mind. Tadashi was deathly pale, his pupils wide and his lips tense. His hands were clenched tightly at his side and he looked like he was straining to hold something back. "Tadashi, are _you_ okay?" Hiro queried, echoing the question his brother had asked him only moments before.

Hiro didn't know what he expected to hear. There were many things Tadashi could have said in response to that question, many things that made sense given his personality. He could have avoided the question by providing the same response Hiro had given him or simply told him he was overworked and tired. The dark circles under Tadashi's eyes were a clear testament to _that._ What Hiro did know, however, was that never, in a million lifetimes, would he have expected the response that Tadashi _did_ give. "You're not entering the SFIT showcase. I forbid it." It was a statement, not a request.

"What?" That couldn't be right. He must have misheard. There was no way Tadashi could possibly be forbidding him from participating in the SFIT showcase when all he could ever go on about was how Hiro was wasting his talents.

"You're not participating in the SFIT showcase." Tadashi repeated, confirming that Hiro had indeed heard him correctly the first time round.

"Uh…" Hiro was at a loss for words. Utterly and completely at a loss for words, his brain stuck on a repetitive cycle of crash, reboot, crash. The one constant in his life had always been Tadashi's insistence that he study further, that he use his gift for something more and he had on several occasions tried to entice Hiro into going to SFIT, not very subtly he might add. This sudden about turn of events simply refused to compute.

"Oh and while we're at it, you're not going to attend it either." Tadashi added.

O…kay. It was official. Tadashi had lost his mind. All that sleep deprivation caused by working late nights on his project and exasperated by the terrible sleep he had to be getting sleeping on the floor beside Hiro's bed had finally broken him. Come to think of it, why _was_ Tadashi sleeping beside his bed so often? He had a perfectly good one just a few steps away.

"Um, random not totally unrelated question, why are you sleeping on the floor next to me?" Hiro asked, choosing to tackle the easier of the questions swirling around in his head. He couldn't ask him what he really wanted to know. Hiro couldn't ask Tadashi why he was acting so crazy all of a sudden, why he looked like death warmed over or why he suddenly wanted Hiro to have nothing to do with SFIT.

"Someone has to make sure you're not sneaking off to late night bot fights." Tadashi replied, the words slipping past his lips too easily to be entirely true. Tadashi was lying.

"I'm not participating in bot fights anymore." Hiro pointed out. "I'm not interested."

Tadashi gave him a look, a mixture of skepticism and disbelief etched onto his features.

"I'm really not." Hiro insisted placing his hands on the table and pushing himself up into a standing position. He subconsciously placed one of his hands onto the flyer he had been contemplating drawing Tadashi's attention back to the innocuous piece of paper. Tadashi stared at it so long Hiro began to feel uncomfortable. He was beset by the sudden urge to just crumple it up and throw it away and had to fight really had to ignore the impulse. He had no idea what all of this was about and wasn't about to let his brother intimidate him into doing something that made absolutely no sense.

"How about we compromise then." Tadashi spoke up once more, managing to startle Hiro even though the conversation hadn't really paused. "I'll personally take you to your next bot fight if you agree to forget about the SFIT showcase. We can even go tonight."

_We apologize for the inconvenience, but Brain did not start successfully. A recent hardware or software change might have caused this._

_If your brain has stopped responding, restarted unexpectedly, or was automatically shut down to protect your sanity, choose Last Known Configuration to revert to the most recent settings that worked._

_If you are not sure what caused the problem, choose Start Brain Normally._

Um… yeah…

_Seconds until Brain starts…_

_29, 28, 27…, …3, 2, 1_

Yup. Broken. Tadashi was definitely broken. He was so broken he would probably never be the same again and for the life of him Hiro couldn't figure out what might have caused it or how to go about even _trying_ to fix it. He narrowed his eyes. "Are you sure you're not sick?"

"I'm fine." Tadashi replied abruptly before continuing. "So, do we have a deal or not?"

Seriously? This was actually happening?!

"NO!" Hiro exclaimed. "We do _not_ have a deal. What on earth has gotten into you? Since when do you encourage me to participate in illegal activities? You're supposed to make sure I grow up to be a respectable adult, not some kind of back street criminal that looks for thrills in dark alleys and slums!" Gone… all of his filters were just gone, swept away be the sheer incredulity that continued to wash through him. This couldn't be real. It just couldn't.

"Bot fighting is not illegal." Tadashi retorted. "Betting on bot fighting is. As long as I make sure you don't actually bet any money on your fights we're in the clear."

"They won't fight me, if I don't bet anything on the fight!" Hiro threw his arms up into the air. "That's how it _works_! No one is stupid enough to risk having their bot damaged by an opponent if there isn't a chance they might actually get something out of it!" He explained.

"Then we'll find a legal bot-fighting league and enter you into that. Surely there are tournaments you can participate in? Ones that offer some kind of prize money to the winner?" Tadashi insisted, unbelievably sticking to his guns.

How on earth was this even happening?

"I'm not interested in _bot fighting_!" Hiro yelled, the words echoing in the small space of the kitchen. "It was stupid! Stupid, irresponsible and reckless! I won't do that again! Not to me and bloody damned well not to YOU!"

"Why not?"

"Because bot fighting is illegal and I have an older brother that taught me that and then went and completely lost his mind!" Hiro yelled in exasperation.

Tick… tick… tick…

_Meow._

The awkward silence that following Hiro's outburst was unexpectedly broken by none other than Mochi who had somehow managed to sneak in while no one was looking. The fat cat was weaving his way through Hiro's feet, plaintively asking for attention. Grateful for the distraction, Hiro knelt down and picked him up, burying his face in the soft fur for a moment before standing to face Tadashi once more. "I know you feel responsible for me. You feel that you need to give me everything I missed out on because mom and dad died but you can't do this to me. You can't control every aspect of what I do. It's my life Tadashi and I will do with it what I please." With those words he turned to leave.

"Hiro… wait…" Tadashi called out, stopping him in his tracks.

Hiro turned to face him.

"I… uh…" Tadashi raised an arm to the back of his neck and looked away, suddenly uncomfortable. "Look," He sighed, dropped his arm and faced Hiro once more. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to control every aspect of your life, I just…" He trailed off, his deep brown eyes clearly expressing his inner conflict.

"I thought you would be proud." Hiro filled the silence when Tadashi made no move to continue his train of thought. "I thought this," Hiro stepped forward and lifted the flyer off the table, "was what you wanted. You're the one that's always telling me I have a lot of potential… that I should do more with my big brain. You're the one that complained the most when I decided I didn't want to continue with school and now, when I finally decide you may have been right all along, you just up and change your mind? It doesn't work that way, Tadashi. I can't do this. I can't live my life second guessing what you approve of."

When Tadashi made no move to respond, Hiro sighed, adjusting Mochi's weight in his arms before asking softly. "Why don't you want me to attend or participate in the SFIT showcase?"

"I…" Tadashi reached up to run a hand over his face, anguish, terror and confusion swirling in his eyes. "Because… you… we… I just…" He sighed sounding completely defeated. "It's going to sound crazy."

Yeah, um… crazy… Hiro knew all about crazy. "I hate to break it to you, but you crossed the crazy line a while ago." Hiro pointed out wryly.

Tadashi's lip twitched in automatic response to the masked humor in Hiro's reply. "Okay, let me rephrase then, it's going to make me sound even _more_ crazy than I already do."

"I really don't want to continue to disillusion further you but it's far too late for that, bro." Hiro teased. "Everyone already knows you're a few bytes short of a gig. Crazy is a requirement in the Hamada gene pool. Seriously though, I won't judge."

Tadashi sighed and ran his hand over his face and fell silent once more, seemingly lost in thought.

Tick… tick… tick…

Hiro was just about to give up and leave when Tadashi spoke up. "It's just a feeling." He admitted, shamefaced.

"A feeling?"

"I just can't shake the feeling that something bad is going to happen if you participate in the SFIT showcase." Tadashi clarified.

Tadashi's words hit home with the force of a sledgehammer, echoing over and over again in Hiro's mind. _Something bad is going to happen if you participate in the SFIT showcase._ That was a given. If there was anything Hiro had learnt it was that the showcase fire was unavoidable, as was his own connection to it. He, Tadashi, the gang and Callaghan were tied together by a red string of fate too thick to sever. It was fact and he had to accept it as such. What he refused to accept though, was the inevitability of Tadashi's death.

"Alright." He abruptly placed Mochi down and crumpled the flyer still in his grasp. "I won't participate in the SFIT showcase." Hiro lied, throwing the crumpled ball. He was aiming at the waste basket.

He missed.

Much to his chagrin it struck the counter and tumbled to the ground instead, rolling to a stop beside Tadashi's shoe. Tadashi bent down and picked it up before straightening the piece of paper. "No, Hiro. You're right." He relented stepping forward to place the flyer back onto the kitchen table. "I have no right to forbid you from participating. I'm sure it's nothing. I'm just tired and its making me paranoid. I'm sure I'll get over it once I get some proper sleep."

Yeah… proper sleep… _that_ was not likely to happen any time soon. In order for that to happen Tadashi would need to actually sleep in his own bed! And not on the floor beside Hiro's. Hiro really wanted to confront Tadashi about that but something told him that now was not the time. So he went with plan B instead.

Hiro picked the flyer up once more and tore it to pieces before making his way over to the waste basket in order to toss it in. He was not going to miss a second time. "Yeah you'll get over it." Hiro agreed. "Next year, right after I take the SFIT entrance exams and beat your entrance score." He added cockily.

Tadashi blinked and stared at the waste basket in disbelief. "Hiro, you…"

"My mind is already made up, Tadashi." Hiro cut him off, staring hard at his brother. It was crunch time. Tadashi had to believe him. If their plan was going to work Tadashi had to let this go. It would be easier to keep him away from the SFIT showcase building this way… easier to keep him alive.

Tadashi returned his stare, the gears in his head clearly analyzing Hiro's words.

_Please._

_Please believe me._

_I know I'm lying through my teeth right now but please Tadashi… for once in your life just…_

_Please believe me._

"Okay." The relief that coursed through Hiro the moment Tadashi relented was indescribable. Finally! All the little things in his life were finally slipping into place. It was about time. Tadashi reached over to ruffle Hiro's hair. "But What makes you so sure you'll beat my entrance score?"

"I have six extra months to study." Hiro pointed out cheekily. "If I knuckle down and really put my mind to it, beating your record breaking entrance score will be a breeze. I know the entrance exams require a little more writing than the showcase would but…" Hiro threaded his fingers together and stretched forward, cracking his knuckles. "I've got this."

"Sure you do." Tadashi replied, playful disbelief coloring his tone.

"Do I detect a sliver of skepticism?" Hiro asked, eyes wide and innocent.

Tadashi chuckled. "You detect more than just a sliver of skepticism." He confirmed.

"Are you doubting my skills?" Hiro demanded, pouting dramatically.

Tadashi burst out into laughter. "It's not your skills I'm doubting." He said, ruffling Hiro's hair once more. "It's your attention span. You have a tendency to get easily distracted."

Hiro scowled. "Just you wait. I'll show you. I'll ace those exams and make you proud." He threw his arms up in the air dramatically and turned to head to his room. He was so caught up in the Act he was putting on he actually planned to launch himself into studies he wouldn't need, momentarily forgetting that all of this was a just show he was putting in order to keep _Tadashi_ away from attending the SFIT showcase.

"Hiro."

Tadashi's voice once again stopped him in his tracks. He turned to face his older brother once more. Tadashi was still standing beside the kitchen table and was now scratching Mochi behind the ears. "I am proud of you." Tadashi said, pointedly keeping his attention focused on the cat. "I always have been."

Hiro bit his lip and swallowed the thick lump in his throat before silently slipping out of the kitchen, running away from Tadashi's inherent kindness lest it break him into spilling the truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been wanting to write this chapter for a long time! I couldn't wait to write Hiro's reaction to Tadashi suddenly deciding that Hiro is NOT going to participate in or attend the SFIT showcase. The fact that Tadashi decided to take it one step further and actually offered to take Hiro bot fighting came as a complete surprise to me though. XD XD XD.


	41. Raging Emotion

**Raging Emotion**

_Microbots can move anything anywhere, with ease. If you can think it, the microbots can do it. The only limit is your imagination._

_Microbots!_

The echoes of his speech rang through his mind, twisting, swirling and circling his sanity like a hungry beast stalking its prey. He was sick to the stomach, fear and nerves taunting him with their presence even as he sought to ignore them. There was no escape. No escape from his memories, from his uncertainty and from the overwhelming terror that he was, once again, making the biggest mistake of his life.

The plan was simple.

All they had to do was follow the original timeline as closely as possible and then deviate at the last possible moment, the moment that really counted. Everyone had agreed that moment was the showcase fire.

So he had once again created his mircobots, once again presented his invention at the annual SFIT showcase despite the promise he had made to Tadashi that he would not participate and once again left the headband the controlled his invention behind as he exited the showcase. That had been the hardest part. His hands had trembled as he placed it down onto the stage and he had to fight really hard not to throw up as he turned his back on it and headed towards the exit.

As expected he had been approached by Alistair Krei. Professor Callaghan had joined them soon thereafter offering the same 'words of wisdom' he had the first time round. The echo of their actions was so similar to his original timeline that for one moment he had begun to wonder if his time travel was just a dream. He might even have been convinced if not for one key difference… Tadashi's absence.

Tadashi was not attending the showcase as he had on that fateful night all those timelines ago. For one, he was still under the mistaken impression that Hiro was not participating and two, he'd been rather cleverly diverted. Fred had made rather blatant use of his contacts to arrange a meeting between Tadashi and Professor Savioke. Professor Savioke, like Professor Callaghan, was one of the leading figures in the field of Robotics and Engineering and Tadashi had practically jumped at the chance to meet with him. In fact, he'd been going on and on about it non-stop ever since 'mysteriously' receiving the invitation in the mail. It would have driven Hiro absolutely crazy if he hadn't been part of orchestrating it.

Okay, so maybe he wasn't being entirely honest. It _had_ driven him absolutely crazy. Seriously! Tadashi's level of obsession with other important people in his chosen field of study was borderline dangerous! As proven by the consequences of his association with Professor Callaghan. But that was a matter for another time. He'd warn Tadashi about the dangers of blind devotion when he could actually prove that Tadashi's faith in Callaghan was misplaced thus giving him some leverage to work with. Right now, he had more important things to worry about.

"Come on."

_Squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek, squeek._

"Oh, come ooooon." He shifted in impatience resisting the urge to tap his fingers on his purple armour in agitation.

"I am not fast."

"Yeah, no kidding." Hiro reached out to grab familiar red armor. "Come on. Go, go, go, go. We're going to miss him if we don't hurry."

"Will apprehending Callaghan before he has a chance to escape with your microbots ensure that Tadashi lives a long and healthy life?" Baymax asked increasing the speed of his waddle in order to keep pace with Hiro.

The moment Hiro had exited the showcase building he had rushed towards the SFIT labs. Once there he had used Tadashi's key card; courtesy of Gogo's sleight of hand skills; to gain access to Tadashi's lab. Moments later he was back out in the open, Baymax in tow. Baymax was fully decked out in his signature bright red and purple armour and was waddling like crazy as he and Hiro raced back towards the showcase building hoping to get there before Callaghan managed to set it alight.

"I don't know but I plan to do everything in my power to ensure that he does!" Hiro called back, still pulling on Baymax's arm. "I really need to make you faster." He added under his breath.

"My suit comes equipped with rocket boosters." Baymax informed him helpfully. Okay, so maybe helpfully was stretching it a bit because Hiro knew about the rocket boosters. He had, after all, installed them himself.

"You're rocket boosters would be a tad conspicuous given the nature of our mission." Hiro whispered in reply ignoring the tiny voice in the back of his mind that was trying to inform him that two armored figures running across the SFIT campus lawns was not exactly any _less_ conspicuous than flying ones.

"Noted. I will file that information away for future reference." Baymax informed him, easily accepting his explanation.

"Yeah, You do that, buddy." Hiro's reply was absent minded as the core of his attention was already on the virtual map that he'd loaded onto his helmet's visor. The map displayed a wire frame of the SFIT building and its surrounding area. Interposed onto it were additional dots indicating the location of the various members of his team. Gogo was hiding inside the showcase building. Fred and Honey Lemon were guarding the windows that could potentially be used as exits on the right and left side respectively and Wasabi was watching the main entrance. Baymax and Hiro were supposed to be headed towards the back entrance.

"Well, would you look at that." Gogo's exclamation traveled through the internal communication channel that Hiro had installed into the suits. She whistled, sounding surprised. "Looks like the pipsqueak was actually right."

"He was?" Wasabi's came across as surprised as well as a tad confused. "Wait, what was he right about again?"

"I don't really believe this time travelling spiel young Hamada and Fred are trying to get us to believe but a masked figure has just entered the SFIT showcase hall. He's wearing a black cloak and is keeping to the shadows in order to remain hidden, just like Hiro said he would. He's headed towards the stage area that contains Hiro's microbots." Gogo explained, sheer disbelief still coloring her tone.

"What do you mean there's a masked man in the showcase building?" Wasabi demanded, fear and uncertainty coloring his words. "You told me we were just going along with this to keep Tadashi's younger brother from doing something stupid. This was all just supposed to be pretend and now you're telling me there really is a crazy masked man out there?"

Hiro's heart plummeted. Wasabi's words only served to confirm what he'd suspected all along. Even though he'd shown them video evidence to the contrary, the gang didn't really believe him. They'd only gone along with his scheme because they knew he was Tadashi's younger brother and they didn't want something to happen to him. They probably thought he'd digitally mastered the video or something. It made sense really. A part of him had always known there was no way they could simply believe him but he'd ignored it. Ignored it in favor of believing he finally had someone on his side.

"Of course there's a crazy masked man out there!" Fred exclaimed over the communication channel suddenly reminding Hiro that he wasn't entirely alone in his belief in time travel. The gang was made up of scientists that sought logic in everything they saw. Everyone that is except for Fred. "The little dude told you a crazy man was planning to set the showcase building alight so of course it makes sense that there's a crazy masked figure running around. I for one _do_ believe in all that time travel stuff and believe Hiro really is from the future! And after this you're all going to have to believe him too!"

Fred's last statement was met with a long moment of silence that was broken what felt like an eternity later. "I'm moving in." Gogo said, rather abruptly changing the subject.

Oh no…

Hiro's heart leaped up into a sudden panicked beat. Gogo was, rather predictably it would seem, deviating from the plan!

"Gogo, no, wait." Hiro exclaimed turning sharply as he finally reached the side of the showcase building. "Don't apprehend him until he actually does something." He ran right past the bushes Honey Lemon was hiding in, not even sparing her a glance. "We need a legitimate crime that the police can pin on him. If we don't do this right, he's just going to get away and try again."

"Copied." Gogo's short reply sent a flicker of relief through him.

"Is it just me or does this feel a little underhanded?" Honey Lemon asked, uncertainty in her voice. "Surely this counts as some form of entrapment?"

"Technically entrapment implies some kind of coercion." Hiro pointed out slipping into the shadows behind the showcase building. "We are currently not influencing him in any way. We are merely observing with the intention of interfering only once we have enough evidence to prove his malicious intent."

"Yeah! What he said!" Fred called out, his tone; contrary to the nerves and shock in everyone else's; actually filled with excitement. "Seriously though, dude. Did you swallow a thesaurus or something?"

Hiro smiled. Leave it to Fred to break the tension so easily. "You're one to talk." He retorted. "You actually know what a thesaurus is."

"What can I say." Fred replied sounding more than a little smug. Hiro could almost picture him preening. "Proper language and etiquette have unfortunately been drilled into my head from the moment I was born, man, the moment I was born."

"Yet you insist on throwing all that training out the window in favor of speaking like a beach bum." Gogo retorted dryly.

"Don't diss it until you've tried it." Fred said. "Beach bum lingo is a lot more expressive than people give it credit for."

"Yeah, yeah, beach bums are the next Hemingway." Gogo's response was gruff. "Back to the matter at hand. Our target has retrieved the headband Hiro used to control the microbots and appears to have deviated away from the stage. He is now headed towards the stall that was demonstrating rocket boosters for cats."

Hiro's heart skipped a beat. Rocket boosters were powered by highly flammable chemicals.

"The world's most useless invention if I do say so myself." Gogo continued, completely oblivious to the sudden rush of anxiety that had befallen her 'fearless' leader. "Why would anyone want to put rocket boosters on their cat?"

So close… They were so close to the defining moment that would change everything…

"Because…" Hiro licked dry lips, fighting against the tremble in his voice before trying again. "Because it's funny." He continued the conversation, using it to calm himself even as he crouched down, intending to sneak into the showcase building.

"What do you mean it's funny?!" Honey Lemon exclaimed, sounding more than a little affronted. "How can you do something like that to a poor defenseless animal simply for your own amusement? I should report you to the SPCA for animal abuse."

"It's only animal abuse if the animal really is poor and defenseless." Hiro retorted. "Cats are anything but. They act all cute and innocent but are all actually secretly plotting to take over the world. Someone needs to put them back in their place and if that someone has to be me…" Hiro paused, "The cost of rocket booster parts is a small price to pay. The fact that I shall also derive some amusement from it is merely an added bonus."

"That poor cat. Does Tadashi know you feel this way? He should probably put your poor Aunt's cat up for adoption before something happens to the poor kitty!" Honey exclaimed.

Hiro smirked. "Tadashi would probably help me build the rocket boots." And that was fact. He chose not to inform Honey that Mochi had already helped test several of their experiments growing up. He'd leave that little bomb shell for later, for when he could see her face.

"Hiro, you and I are going to have a long conversation about abusing poor defenseless animals once this is over." Honey warned, choosing not to question his statement about Tadashi.

"Yeah, we will." Hiro agreed, the smile slipping from his face as his mind and attention were once again brought back to the task at hand. He fell silent, reaching out to turn the handle of the door that would lead him into the showcase building when the sudden blaring of the fire alarm startled him, causing him to jump.

"Gogo!" He grabbed the handle and ripped open the door. "Status report! NOW!" He ran down one of the corridors, Baymax waddling after him.

"He's set the exhibit alight and is now headed towards one of the other experiments. I'm in pursuit!"

"Gogo, no! Don't go after him on your own. He's dangerous. I'm on my way!" Hiro turned a corner skidding to a halt when he suddenly encountered a wall of fire in his path, all too familiar flames flickering and dancing as they once again seemed to taunt him, making him feel small and powerless. His anxiety levels only continued to increase when he received no response from Gogo.

"Gogo? Are you there?" He turned and headed back the way he'd come, intending to find another way into the main showcase hall. "Gogo? Status report, now!" He desperately barked commands into his receiver trying to ignore the dark sense of foreboding that was beginning to creep up on him. Gogo couldn't be… Callaghan couldn't have… Surely she wasn't… "GOGO!" Her name was a desperate cry on his lips fuelled by terror, grief and disbelief as he lost the battle with his own mind, images of Gogo's shattered and broken body flickering through it even as he sought to deny the possibility that it could be true.

"Hiro? What's wrong?" Honey Lemon's voice filtered through the speakers, panic in her tone. "Has something happened to Gogo?"

"I don't know!" Hiro replied, panting in panic as he turned yet another corner, slipping in behind the stage to make his way round. "I just don't know. She went after Callaghan and now she's not replying and everything is falling apart again and…"

"Yo, little dude, its ok." Surprisingly it was Fred that spoke next. "Just breathe. Gogo's fast and strong, just like Jesse Quick. One masked figure and a little fire is not going to stop her. She probably turned her communicator off. She keeps complaining that I talk too much which is probably true but how often do you get the chance to be a super hero? I mean, check it out! We're chasing down a super villain here and wait… did you say Callaghan as in Professor Callaghan?"

Oh no.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no. He didn't need this. Not right now. Not when he had more important things on his mind! Hiro hadn't revealed the identity of the masked man to the team yet. He didn't think they would have believed him and if Wasabi's earlier reaction was anything to go by it had been a smart decision. Even if it had been a little short lived. If he was to be entirely honest, part of him was actually a little relieved that little piece of information had found its way into the open. Keeping secrets had never been his strong point and the knowledge had been eating away at him. The other part of him, the one that was currently more in control was telling him this was anything but a good idea. The team didn't need to know, not yet, not when they still had time to question his sanity and abandon him right in the midst of the crisis in which he required them the most.

"Did I? I don't remember?" Hiro feigned ignorance once again hoping to find a way to distance himself from a difficult conversation he really didn't want to be having. They didn't have time for it after all. The showcase building was already burning, Gogo was trapped somewhere inside and it was only a matter of time before it exploded.

"Hiro…" Honey Lemon started.

"I'm in!" Hiro cut her off before she could say anything more, finally managing to slip into the main showcase hall. The moment he entered the all too familiar space, he ran his eyes over the various exhibits, ignoring the rising fear that coursed through his veins in reaction to the amber flames dancing along the wall on the far right of the hall. He couldn't give into the panic, not yet, not when he had to find Gogo and get them both to safely.

It only took him a minute to spot the yellow armored figure lying still on ground. "Found her!" He ran to her side, and quickly turned her over, eyes searching for signs of life. "Baymax, scan Gogo for injuries!"

"I will scan her now." Baymax replied, coming to a stop at Hiro's side. He had been following close behind throughout the entire ordeal. "Scan complete. She appears to be suffering from mild head trauma and should regain consciousness shortly. With proper monitoring, care and rest she should make a full recovery."

Hiro heaved a sigh of relief just as Gogo groaned. "Gogo." Hiro shook her gently. "Come on, wake up. You can't sleep now. The showcase building is burning and we need to get out."

Gogo blinked and sat up carefully, reaching out to touch her head. "I blacked out." She informed him, her statement about as helpful as some of Baymax's earlier statements.

"No kidding." Hiro replied, standing up before reaching down to help her up. The moment she was standing he slung her arm over his shoulder and turned to head towards the exit, ignoring the sick feeling that had settled into his gut the moment he realised Callaghan was probably going to get away. "Hey guys," He spoke into his communicator addressing the rest of his team as he Baymax and Gogo slowly made their way back the way they had come. "Please keep an eye out for the masked man. Gogo, Baymax and I will be out shortly."

"Copied." Honey Lemon replied.

"You got it, little guy!" Fred confirmed.

"You want us to fight the masked man?" Wasabi questioned.

No one answered Wasabi's question, the communication falling silent. It was an uncomfortable silence, filled with anxiety, tension and far too much fear to even begin to comprehend, giving his senses time to finally comprehend the situation he was in. It roared in, the fire, encroaching unto all his senses with every step he took, the heat of the flames, lapping against his skin, the acrid scent of smoke, bright amber light and light crackle and crack of devoured fuel. Familiar, all of it was so familiar, a nightmare he couldn't seem to escape from no matter how hard he tried. Why? Why was he destined to endure this? Over and over again when all he wanted to escape, to set himself free of the destructive cycle and all it entailed. He couldn't do this, he couldn't do this anymore, all he needed was just a little more time. They were nearly there, he could see it, he could see the back door he had used to enter the building, waiting for him, just a few steps away, just a few steps to break the cycle… just…

"Wait a minute!" Wasabi's exclamation tore the spell the flames were casing on Hiro's mind apart. "He's here!"

"Who's here?" Honey Lemon asked. "Do you need backup? Did you find the masked man?"

"No." Wasabi's sounded stunned. "It's Tadashi." Hiro stumbled to a halt, his chest suddenly aching as his heart skipped a beat. "Tadashi's here and he's currently running towards the showcase building."

Hiro's heart dropped.

No.

This couldn't be happening.

Not again.

It just wasn't possible.

Tadashi was not supposed to be anywhere near the showcase building! He was supposed to be on a plane, up in the sky, about an hour into the flight that was supposed to take him to meet Professor Savioke in Los Anjo-shi. Hiro had made sure of it for crying out loud! He'd even accompanied Aunt Cass when she had gone to drop Tadashi off at the airport. "Damnit Tadashi, why?"

_A fatal error has occurred. Thought processes will be terminated. You have the opportunity to save recovery files and restart the entire process. Would you like to save a recovery file?_

NO!

Hiro's brain shut down and he went straight into fight or flight mode. He did not pass 'Go' and he did not collect $200. "Baymax, get Gogo out of here." He ordered shoving Gogo straight into Baymax's arms before abruptly making an about turn and running straight back into the burning building only one though running through his mind.

Last chance to save the world be damned, he was going to save Tadashi or die trying!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The remaining chaos in my life has played a small part in delaying this current update but a bigger part has been played by the fact that this chapter has been incredibly difficult to write! I struggled a lot with the flow and then it finally clicked and decided to go in a very surprising direction. Random poll question: Who of you think that Hiro is going to A) die and reset... again! OR B) actually survive this time. If your response is B what do you think Tadashi is going to survive as well?


	42. Tadashi: Sixth Sense

**Tadashi: Sixth Sense**

Something was wrong.

He couldn't quite put his finger on it but something was definitely very wrong.

Tadashi frowned at his watch, nervously tapping the fingers of his right hand on his thigh as he tried to figure out why he couldn't shake the feeling of unrest that suddenly had him in its grip. His friends would probably tell him that he was nervous because of his upcoming flight but Tadashi knew better. He had no fear of flying. This was not his first flight and he knew that statistically speaking flying was one of the safest ways to travel.

Following _that_ argument his friends would then likely tell him that he was nervous because he was on his way to meet a man he highly admired and respected. That argument would hold more credence that the first but the timing was all wrong. It was too early for him to be nervous about that. He'd already met Callaghan and the nerves had only really hit him an hour before his scheduled appointment.

In the great words of Sherlock Holmes: _When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth._

Having eliminated the obvious arguments that could be made given the current situation he was in, left him with only one possibility. Hiro was about to get himself into some kind of trouble.

Tadashi glanced at his plane ticket before glancing back at his watch. Ten minutes. His flight to Los Anjo-shi was scheduled to begin boarding in just ten minutes. Not nearly enough time for him to exit the airport, make his way back home, check on his brother and return. That was assuming airport security would let him back in of course. He'd already checked his luggage in and gone through all of the security check points. If he left now he was not only going to miss his flight but was also likely to lose a suitcase full of clothes. His name and contact details were attached to the bag but everyone knew the chances of luggage findings its way back to its point of origin intact were pretty slim.

Tadashi's leg began to shake, moving rapidly to keep time with the rapid beat of his nervous fingers.

He was over reacting.

Tadashi glanced up at the monitor installed above the point of entry to the boarding gate he would use to board his flight. Seven minutes.

He had to be over reacting. Hiro wasn't interested in bot fights anymore. He'd shown no sign of even trying to sneak out to one recently. Tadashi would have known if he had. He was, after all, sleeping on the floor right next to Hiro's bed.

Six minutes.

With bot fighting out of the equation, Hiro didn't have any dangerous hobbies left, right? Wait, this was Hiro he was talking about. The kid could turn the simple act of _breathing_ into a dangerous activity.

Tadashi reached into his back pocket and pulled out his cell phone. Not even bothering to look at the screen, he quickly unlocked it and input Hiro's phone number, sending the call through with a soft tap of his index finger. Five minutes.

He lifted the phone to his ear.

_Ring._

He was over reacting.

_Ring, ring._

Hiro would probably answer the phone and call him a knucklehead for worrying so much. He would then order him to get his ass onto the plane and to stop bugging him until he came back from his trip. Tadashi had been driving Hiro crazy the past few days. He couldn't help it. He'd worked really hard to get where he was in his chosen field of study and the very idea that he could meet _another_ leading figure in the field and have an opportunity to exchange ideas with him was simply overwhelming.

_Ring, ring._

The letter addressed to him had been more than a little unexpected. Tadashi didn't receive much mail and certainly not any that was still delivered using the rather outdated 'snail mail' method. The last letter that had been delivered that way had been his acceptance letter announcing he had been granted a bursary to further his education at SFIT.

_Ring, ring._

Three minutes.

He'd been a little confused and had quickly torn the plain white envelope open. The piece of paper inside was every bit as plain and simple as the envelope it had come in. The information on it however, was a completely different story. It stated that the scientific community at large had decided to hold a special seminar aimed at young promising students that would soon be entering the job market. Attendance was by invite only. Professor Savioke was slated to be the special guest speaker and all the attending students would have an opportunity to meet and socialize with him. It was the opportunity of a lifetime and Tadashi was one of the select few fortunate enough to have been invited.

_Ring, ring._

Two minutes.

This seminar could probably make his career.

_Ring, ring._

Everyone knew the working world was more about _who_ you knew than _what_ you knew. Adding Professor Savioke to his acquaintance list would probably open several doors of opportunity that would otherwise be left closed to him.

_Ring, ring._

Doors he would probably need if he wanted to make a difference in the world.

_Ring, ring._

Opportunities that he probably shouldn't be throwing away because of a mere gut feeling that his little brother _may_ be getting himself into trouble… _again._ Tadashi hung up the call. One minute before his gate officially opened for boarding; he gathered his belongings, stood and walked away, heading straight towards the exit.

_Flight LAS348 to Los Anjo-shi is now boarding at gate 8._

Tadashi didn't even glance back.

_\- BH6 - BH6 - BH6 –_

_Tadashi stared at the sight before him in sheer disbelief, his mind fighting to accept what his eyes were telling him._

_Burning._

_The showcase building was burning and all he could hear was his Aunt's voice telling him that Hiro had decided to participate in the SFIT Annual Showcase. Apparently his brother had gotten it into his head that he would get himself accepted into SFIT and then 'surprise' Tadashi with the news when he got back from his seminar in Los_ Anjo-shi. This after promising Tadashi that he was not going to take part. The fact that Hiro had chosen to break the promise did not surprise him. The fact that the showcase building was already burning when he finally arrived on campus, did.

It simply didn't make sense. Not to a logical mind, anyway. It wasn't the fact that the building was burning that he was struggling to comprehend. All buildings were capable of burning, and ones that housed scientific experiments usually ran a higher risk of catching alight than those that did not. The information he was struggling grasp was the fact that it was this particular building that was burning on this particular day, shortly after he had been plagued by nightmares that now appeared to have been predicting this very event. It simply did not make sense.

Dreams were just a sequence of images, emotions and sensations that occurred when one was asleep. The content thereof was influenced by a person's desires, anxieties, life experiences and obsessions. They were but figments of the dreamer's imagination and were not meant to actually manifest in reality. They were meant to be processed and then forgotten. Only that was easier said than done.

Tadashi had been struggling to deal with his nightmares, the flickering flames managing to haunt him even while he was awake. He'd been unable to shake the feeling that there was more to it than simple anxiety and now, as he faced the reality before him, he was forced to admit that his premonitions had been well justified, only it still did not make any sense. This couldn't be real, couldn't be happening. His mind never had the ability to predict the future and he couldn't see why it would decide to start now. He wasn't a seer, prophet, sage, oracle, medium or even a diviner. He didn't deal with the supernatural. Heck, he didn't even believe in it. He was a scientist and scientists only dealt with facts.

Fact.

His brother had decided to participate in the Annual showcase.

Fact.

The showcase building was burning.

Fact.

Aunt Cass had informed him that Hiro had still not made his way home, yet.

Fact.

He did not see Hiro's slim form among the crowd that was currently fleeing the flames.

Inference.

There was a good chance Hiro was still in that burning building.

The moment he came to the conclusion that his little brother may be in danger, Tadashi was off, running headlong down the walkway that would invariably lead him into the burning showcase building. He bumped into a woman and instinctively reached out to steady her just long enough for her to catch her balance before releasing her in favor of continuing his headlong dash. He didn't even register her long brown hair or large hazel eyes.

Flames streaked into the sky casting an amber hue upon his skin. Waves of heat joined in the fray, caressing his skin with ever increasing intensity. Warm gusts of air swirled around him, twirling almost playfully around before swishing up to snatch his cap. The fabric flew high up into the air before drifting out of sight behind him, unimportant and forgotten in the face of more pressing matters.

His body connected with a firm surface, the glass pane beneath his grasp already hot as he pushed the door open. Acrid smoke swirled hungrily out to surround him, hot air, ash and smoke plunging mercilessly into his throat, aggressively decreasing his ability to breathe. He gasped and coughed, desperately fighting for fresh air but there was none to be found. Panic began to trickle through him and his dormant sense of self-preservation suddenly flared to life, urging him to turn around, to go back the way he'd come and to flee the hungry flames. He ignored it and plunged further into the ravenous inferno.

Hiro was here, somewhere in the flames, and he was damned if he was leaving without his brother.

_Crack._

A large piece of the ceiling came tumbling down, raging flames still devouring it even as it fell apart. Tadashi jumped to avoid it, tumbling to the ground but he did not stay down for very long. The moment he connected with the ground he rolled before leaping gracefully back to his feet, eyes still scanning the burning space.

Where was he?

Where was that boneheaded little brother of his?

He was surrounded, encircled by flames, smoke and ash and all of it only served to bring his nightmares ever closer to the forefront of his mind. In them he was burning, fighting desperately to save himself, fighting desperately to save… It didn't make sense. This couldn't be happening. It just couldn't. It had to be a dream, another one, a new scenario playing out in his mind, taunting him with his sheer powerlessness to save himself let alone those he cared about.

He'd had several dreams of this fire and in them had seen several outcomes. In one, he died alone, burnt to ash by an explosion that threw him into the air. Like now, he'd been running through the flames, looking around in desperation, searching… searching for someone. He did not know who. In another, he bled, his life slipping out through a gash in his throat as he rested in someone's arms. Bright flames danced around his body in glee, moving ever closer and all he could think about was that idiot brother of his, the bonehead that simply refused to leave his side even as the flames threatened to devour them both. That dream broke his heart but it was nowhere near as bad as the last one, the one that forced him to cradle his brothers lifeless blood covered body in his arms as he fought to escape the flames... the one that had him desperately praying he was not too late, his heart too broken to accept what his mind already knew… Hiro was already dead.

NO!

He would not accept it. Tadashi would not accept that outcome. Not while he still had breath in his body. He would find him. He would find his baby brother and save him. Hiro was not going to die here and neither was he. They were both going to get out and the moment he saw the sky again he was going to grab the bonehead by his ear and drag him home so he could lecture him till the cows came home.

Who was he kidding?

Mere moments before his hope died he an all too familiar slim silhouette headed in his direction. "Hiro!" The cry escaped his lips and he put on a fresh burst of speed, heading straight towards the silhouette, relief and euphoria triggering a fresh burst of adrenaline that flooded in to replace the initial rush that had all but faded in the face of his fear and doubt.

He'd found him. Tadashi was so convinced that he had finally found his baby brother that it took his mind a few long minutes to fully register that something was _still_ wrong. The silhouette shifted, its shape changing as he drew nearer its form losing the familiarity that had him rushing towards it the first place. His heart dropped. It wasn't him. The lone slim figure, surrounded by flames was not his baby brother. The familiar messy strands of hair, the drooping hoodie, the slim shoulders, none of it was there. It was all missing, replaced by sleek hard lines that he did not recognize.

The figure was heading towards him, running with an achingly familiar gait, each step drawing them ever closer to one another, revealing tiny details he had not seen before. Amber flames flickered and danced, reflecting off of the smooth surface of what appeared to be dark purple armor. The figure's face was obscured by a dark visor, that reflected the inferno that surrounded them. The sight was mesmerizing, the sheer strangeness of it all capturing his attention as his mind tried unsuccessfully to identify what he was seeing.

Unfortunately, he was not given the time to process it.

The figure arrived at his side, grabbed his arm and pulled him off course, turning Tadashi back the way he had come. Tadashi was unable to resist, the stranger's inertia stronger than his own. He stumbled, caught his balance and instinctively followed after the stranger, his mind still trying to catch up to the odd events unfolding before him. He was already half way back to the entrance to the showcase building before he fully registered that he was being pulled out of the building, away from the fire… away… away from his still missing baby brother.

"No!" He cried out stubbornly digging his heels in. His sudden action pulled them both to a halt with a sudden jerk. "I can't leave! Not yet! Not without him!"

The figure before him appeared to flinch but did not release him, his stance every bit as stubborn as Tadashi's. "You can't stay here. It's dangerous! Callaghan is fine."

Callaghan? What did Professor Callaghan have to do with anything?

Tadashi shook his head, shaking the strange statement off as he continued to resist the stranger's insistent tugs towards the exit. He didn't have time for this. He didn't have time to argue with some well-meaning stranger when his little brother was still missing, probably still lost somewhere in the burning building. "No!" Tadashi shook his head, twisted and pulled, his arm beginning to slip out of the stranger's grasp. "Not without him!" The resistance on his arm finally fell away and in that instance he was free. He turned away from the exit and ran, back towards the center of the blazing inferno.

He didn't make it very far. Something collided with him a mere few steps into his headlong dash and he tumbled to the ground. He twisted and turned, blindly reaching out to throw the obstruction off of him only to fail when slender arms made their way around his waist, desperately clinging to him. "Let go!" He yelled, frustration and panic beginning to take over his mind. "Let go of me!" He needed to go. "I need to find him!" Tadashi reached down and grabbed hold of the stranger's arms, fighting to pull them off of him. "Hiro! Hiro is in here somewhere." He tugged, twisting his body in an attempt to add some leverage to the movement. "I'm not leaving until I find Hiro!"

"Tadashi…" Tadashi managed to twist around, displacing the figure onto his back and began to stubbornly crawl further into the showcase building so focused on the task at hand that it took him several moments to realize the stranger appeared to know who he was. "Tadashi, STOP!" The desperation in the cry filtered into his panicked mind drawing his attention back to the armored figure on top of him. "Just stop." The stranger repeated panting in desperation before reaching up to lift off his helmet. "I'm not in there. I'm right here, right beside you and we really need to get out of here. Before we both die… again."

Tadashi's thoughts ground to a complete standstill and he stared at the sight before him in complete disbelief taking in familiar amber eyes, button nose and pixie features all while trying to comprehend the absurdity of the situation he found himself in. It would appear that the armored figure was not a stranger after all for staring directly at him was none other than… "Hiro?"

"Yeah, we don't have time for this right now, Tadashi. We've gotta go." Hiro stood up before leaning down to reach for Tadashi's arm once more, tugging on it insistently.

Tadashi stood and allowed Hiro to drag him back towards the exit once more, his brain still processing the scene before him. It shouldn't surprise him. Seriously, nothing Hiro did should surprise him. He loved the bonehead to a fault but was not blind to the fact that the kid was, after all, more than a little crazy. Let's not forget reckless and impulsive. If anyone were to invent strange purple and red armor, it would be Hiro only… only Tadashi hadn't really expected it. Hiro was more comfortable with a controller in his hand and was more likely to build a giant remote controlled robot that a suit he would be required to wear himself. Fred on the other hand, was another matter. He could definitely see Fred sporting some kind of Super Hero suit but not Hiro.

Wait…

Hiro had been hanging around Fred a lot recently. Don't tell me Fred actually managed to…

Tadashi blinked and stumbled to a halt once more when Hiro suddenly shoved him back a few steps, placing his slim form between Tadashi and the broken beam that had unexpectedly fallen down in front of them. The beam glowed a brilliant red, molten hot metal hissing and sizzling as flames continued to dance upon it and it only took Tadashi a few seconds to realize that they were in serious trouble. The beam was obstructing their path to the exit.

Hiro turned to face him, his expression bare and something about it, something in it simply did not compute. Hiro's wild hair was almost tame, stuck to his sweat slicked forehead, his lips were parted and his amber eyes were wide. Not surprising, given the situation they were in but not entirely accurate either for his eyes held no signs of fear. Instead they were filled with resignation. "I'm…" Hiro licked his dry lips, his words hoarse. "I'm sorry, Tadashi."

The regret in Hiro's words tugged at something in Tadashi's heart the true meaning behind them suddenly registering in his brain. Hiro was apologizing for failing to get them out. Hiro was giving up and that thought did not sit well with him. "Like hell we're dying here!" Tadashi yelled, and this time it was his turn to grab his brothers arm. "We just have to look for another angle!" He twisted his body and ran back the way they had come, taking them a few steps further in before deviating towards the left, heading towards one of the hall's side walls. The exists were barred, molten beams and exploding experiments blocking their paths but doors were not the only means to escape a burning building. Buildings also had windows!

And so he once again threw himself into his task, determination urging his feet forward. He ran, jumped, twisted, ducked and dodged all while firmly keeping hold of Hiro's wrist. They made short work of the distance, reaching the left side of the hall in record time before skidding to a halt.

No.

Please… no…

Tadashi stared at the wall in despair, raising his head up, his eyes continuing the journey to stare in frustration at the windows that were far too high and far too small to be of any assistance. "I…" Tadashi shifted his grip to Hiro's hand unable to turn to face him. "I'm s…." The apology, stuck in his throat, the echo of Hiro's earlier words swirling around in his mind and he had to fight to speak again, to voice his regret. "Hiro," He squeezed his little brothers hand. "I'm so…"

_Crack!_

A slash of pale green light illuminated the scene for a moment, revealing the large crack that had suddenly appeared in the wall before them.

_Snap!_

Large chunks of cement tumbled to the ground, turning his world a bright shade of pink

_Poof!_

Fine dust exploded up into the air mere moments before the hallucinations began in earnest.

_Fwoosh._

A large fire breathing lizard fell from the sky, tumbling to land beside them, the creatures skin appearing to repel the fire.

_Snap!_

A blue dome of ice shot up from the ground creating a wall of protection between them and the ravenous flames.

_Swish._

Flashes of yellow, pink and green, rushing in on him, swirling rapidly around his mind, creating shadows, pictures, illusions that flared up in vivid color only to be swept away by a large wave of black.

_Thud._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tadashi's inner voice is very different to Hiro's. Hiro's is erratic and all over the place. Tadashi's is a lot more logical and methodical. Until the end that is.


	43. Awakening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so the flow of this chapter is very strange. There is a flashback into the past but it is not clearly marked. It is written as part of the thought process. I hope it's not too confusing.

**Awakening**

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh. Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh._

The sounds that surrounded him were rhythmic, repeating over and over again at predictable intervals and even though his heart was filled with anxiety, they were soothing. They existed. He was here; alive; surrounded by white walls and antiseptic scents and he still couldn't believe it.

_Beep. Beep…_

His head hurt. Waves of pain coursed through it in time with his heartbeat but he welcomed the pain. He welcomed the steady beat, the course fabric against his skin and the soft brush of his fingertips as he absently traced the bandage doctors had wrapped around his head because it meant he was still here, still breathing and still very much alive.

_Beep…_

He'd won.

_Beep. Whoosh._

He'd escaped amber flames, molten metal, acrid smoke and exploding shards and all of this after running headlong into danger, not once but _twice._ He didn't die in the showcase fire. He was still alive, still breathing, still capable of feeling but strangely enough he was empty inside. He'd finally managed to turn things around, to change his timeline enough to survive the ravenous conflagration but it wasn't enough. It wasn't enough to wipe clean the shadows of everything he'd already lived through or the nightmares that continued to reside in his memories.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh._

He hadn't expected to survive. The moment that beam fell across their path he'd been convinced they were done for. He couldn't do it. He couldn't fight against fate anymore and all he'd wanted was for everything to just… end. For his last chance to fade away and for his mind to finally find peace in oblivion but Tadashi had had other ideas.

_Like hell we're dying here…_

Tadashi's words had echoed through his mind, filled with conviction and determination. Hiro could relate to the sentiment. He understood it, knew it on an intimate level, had blindly relied on it time and time again in his own fight to change things but sometimes mere words and conviction were not enough…

_We just have to look for another angle!_

He'd tried that. He'd tried it over and over again. His belief in that simple statement was often the only thing that kept him going in the face of repeated overwhelming failure. He'd clung blindly to the belief that all his problems could be solved simply by changing his perspective but had been forced to realise that life was not that simple. Some problems could not be solved so easily. Not without paying a price.

He'd won. He'd finally won but couldn't shake the feeling that in doing so had still managed to lose.

He'd escaped the burning inferno and managed to come out the other side still alive. That simple act was an achievement in itself and he should probably be experiencing a sense of pride only… only none of it had been a result of his own efforts. He was alive, breathing and still capable of living but it was his brother that had gotten him here.

_Tadashi would have been a better hero than me._

Tadashi.

If not for Tadashi, they would both be dead, mere ash and memory in space and time. He'd given up. For the first time since starting his journey into the past, he'd actually given up, his heart and mind tired of reliving his failure, the agony of death and the seeming inevitability of it all. He'd been ready to just throw in the towel and let destiny take its course but Tadashi had had other ideas.

_Like hell we're dying here!_

Tadashi refused to die, refused to give up and with those words had taken charge of the situation, slipping into the role of protector as easily as breathing. He'd grabbed Hiro's wrist and pulled him away from the burning beam and the exit it had obstructed. He then proceeded to ignore all common sense and convention, avoiding the obvious exit points in favour of finding an alternate route out, in favour of finding another angle. It had been a gamble, a dangerous act of desperation that took them further into the raging inferno before leading them back out and it had come at a cost.

The raging inferno had not made way for them, greedily reaching for them even as they fought to escape its grasp. Flickers of flames had danced upon their skin, acrid smoke had reached in to steal their breath and debris... debris had rained all around. One of the pieces hit him on the head, opening up a gash in his forehead as it tumbled to the ground. Hiro did not cry out in reaction to it. He'd swallowed the cry of pain not wanting Tadashi to know. Tadashi was intensely focused on getting them out and Hiro had not wanted to break his concentration.

Warm blood trickled into his eyes but he simply used his free hand to wipe it away. He didn't even break stride, the fear of time running out urging him ever forward. He couldn't help it, the hope that had begun to course through him the moment Tadashi took charge because that was the way things were always meant to be. Tadashi was here, fulfilling his role as Hiro's big brother, his protector and his lifeline.

They were going to get out. Hiro was sure of it. Tadashi was going to get them out and his family would finally be complete again. Him, Aunt Cass and… and Tadashi. Only, Hiro already knew life was not that simple. Hope was not enough to change fate and the reality of that hit him with the force of a sledgehammer when they stumbled to a halt once more, only to realise they were still trapped, the fury of death behind them and the sheer cold wall of despair before them.

_Hiro._

Tadashi reached down to squeeze his hand, his grip desperately tight.

_I'm so…_

Sorry. Tadashi had meant to tell him he was sorry only he never got the chance. His words were drowned out by the sound of the wall cracking. Bright green light flared into the space and it took Hiro only a moment to realise that help was finally on the way. Wasabi sliced the wall apart, large chunks of cement tumbling down only to turn bright pink in reaction to the chemicals Honey Lemon tossed into the air. The pink blocks connected to the ground and disintegrated, large chunks of rock vanishing in an instant as pink powder filled the air. The powder swirled into the building, rushing in to join the smoke and flames and only added to the chaos that surrounded them.

"Super jump!" That… that was Fred, leaping impulsively into the fray, excitement and glee colouring his tone. He tumbled down from the sky and landed gracefully at Hiro's side, strategically placing himself between Hiro and the flames that were mere seconds away from setting Hiro's hair alight. The flames surged away, the special chemicals in Fred's armour repelling them, finally granting Hiro much needed relief. He was safe. His team had his back and things were finally going right only… only life was not that simple.

Hiro stumbled, fighting to catch his balance when the ground unexpectedly shifted beneath his feet. The expected shift triggered a myriad of warning bells in his head. He glanced back at the inferno he was so desperately trying to escape and scanned what remained of the building's interior only to catch his breath in horror. One of the large pillars that formed part of the buildings key construction had finally given way and was tumbling to the ground, throwing ash and dust up into the air and beneath it… beneath it lay a large box of lithium-ion batteries that had been used to power several of the larger experiments.

Time had finally run out.

A large sheet of ice rose up from the ground, obstructing his view just as the pillar landed only to shatter apart just a few split seconds later, torn apart by the force of the ensuing explosion. A force of heated air rushed straight towards them, sweeping them off their feet with ridiculous ease before throwing them all out of the building. He was weightless, helpless against a force he couldn't even see. His breath caught in his throat, his brain froze and his stomach fought its way into his throat only to jar to a halt when he tumbled back down, his body connecting with the hard unforgiving ground.

"Tadashi!"

He twisted on the ground, eyes desperately seeking, searching, looking for any sign of his brother. The explosion had separated them, mercilessly tearing their hands apart, filling Hiro's heart with fear and dread.

"Tadashi!"

He had to find him. His brother had to be here! He had to be alive. Hiro had fought too long and hard to fail… again.

"Tadashi! Where the hell are you?!" He screamed, despair and anguish pooling into his soul.

"It's okay." Soft hands reached out to wipe the blood out of his eyes, the gentle lilt in Honey Lemon's tone reaching out to soothe his ravaged mind. "Hiro, it's okay." She brushed his hair off his forehead. "He's here. Tadashi is right here. He's still alive. Wasabi is taking care of him. Just breathe, okay?" She ran her hands through his hair before reaching forward to brush blood out of his eyes once more. "Just breathe and let me take care of you. The paramedics are on their way."

_Tadashi is here._

Hiro had finally won. Take that fate!

Wait…

Paramedics?

Oh no.

The realisation that paramedics were on their way suddenly sunk in, his mind finally catching up with the implications of what Honey Lemon was telling him. Tadashi was hurt and was probably going to need medical attention. It made sense. I mean, there was no way he'd be able to escape an inferno like that unscathed. Ensuring that he received proper treatment sooner rather than later was a good thing but Tadashi was not the only one likely to be targeted by well-meaning medical staff members.

"I've… I've got to go." Hiro pushed Honey Lemon's hands away in sudden panic. The moment his hands were free he pushed down against the ground in a bid to stand only to have his body betray him. He couldn't do it. He physically was incapable of gathering enough energy to stand. "No." He slammed his hands down in sudden frustration. "No, no, no, no, no!" Tears poured down his face.

"Hiro…"

"I can't stay here."

"Hiro…" Honey Lemon grabbed hold of his hands.

"They can't find me." He fought to free his hands from her grasp. "Not like this. Not in my hero suit. No one can know who we are."

"It's okay." Honey Lemon squeezed his hands before released them. "It's okay, Hiro." She reached down to unclip his armour. "I've got you. I'll make sure they don't find your armour." And gently removed it. Piece by piece, revealing the sweat soaked T-shirt and shorts that he wore beneath it. She carefully hid each piece beneath a bush before reaching out to once again wipe blood off his face and hair off his forehead. "I've got you, okay?"

"Okay." Hiro replied before tumbling into her lap, his eyes finally drifting closed.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh._

Familiar, the rhythmic sounds were just so very familiar, beeping in time with the rhythm of his heart and the steady flow of his breath, their very existence proof that, despite his failures, he was still very much alive.

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh. Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh. Beep. Beep. Beep. Whoosh._

"Stop it."

Hiro blinked in confusion, amber eyes opening to scan the empty white space that surrounded him.

"Stop blaming yourself." Tadashi's hoarse voice drew his attention to the bed, his brother's deep brown gaze trapping Hiro's amber one, the light in it confirming that his brother was finally awake. That was a good thing. His ability to read Hiro's mind so soon after waking up, however, was not.

Hiro lifted his head off of Tadashi's bed where he'd been resting it and leaned back in the chair he was slumped in. "Blaming myself? For what?" He queried, his voice every bit as hoarse as Tadashi's as he casually attempted to pretend that he had no idea what Tadashi was referring to. They both knew he was lying through his teeth. Even though Hiro had managed to live several years without him, his brother still knew him… better than he would like.

"The fire." Tadashi rasped, "And this." He continued, weakly lifting one of his hands in order to use it to indicate himself.

Hiro scowled. The action caused his headache to flare up but he ignored the pain. "Why would I blame myself for…"

"Hiro." Tadashi cut him off.

Hiro dropped the pretence and hung his head, attempting to hide the tears gathering in his eyes. "I tried you know." He whispered hoarsely, reaching down to rub absently at his still aching chest. "I really tried to keep you away."

"Keep me away?"

"From the showcase." Hiro expanded, a cough forcing him to pause before continuing. "And the fire."

"The seminar." Tadashi breathed. "It was you."

Hiro glanced up, trailing his eyes over his brother. Tadashi was lying in a hospital bed, bandages wrapped around his hands, fingers and forearms. A NIV Face mask was attached to his face, moving clean air into damaged lungs, an IV drip was inserted beneath the bandages on his right arm and a heart monitor was clipped onto the index finger of his right hand. It was a familiar sight and similar to the situation he had found himself in when he had first come to. "And Fred." Hiro admitted. "His parents organised the event and I... cough, cough, cough…" He rubbed his throat trying to soothe the dry ache as he fought to regain his breath, "I drew up all the invitations."

"I should have known." Tadashi sighed, a flicker of concern creeping into his eyes.

"I didn't mean to lie to you." Hiro bit his lip, a flicker of guilt coursing through him. "If… cough… if it helps, Professor Savioke was really interested in meeting you." Hiro paused reaching for the glass of water beside Tadashi's bed. He took a big sip, attempting to soothe the pain in his throat before continuing, "Especially after I told him what you're working on."

"Hiro…" The concern in Tadashi's tone gave away what he was about to ask.

"I'm fine." Hiro reassured him, placing the glass back down with a dull thud before sinking down into the chair, using the action to hide the dizzy spell that was beginning to course through him. "I'm just worried about you."

Tadashi frowned. "How?" He asked, smoothly changing the topic in order to give Hiro the space he clearly needed.

"Well, first we had to think of something you would be willing to attend." Hiro replied, pausing clear his throat and take another sip of water before continuing, "I know you're a really big fan of Savioke, cough, and…"

"No." Tadashi cut him off once more. "The fire… how did you know?"

Hiro blinked and fell silent, somehow managing to sink even further down into the chair. He dropped his gaze once more and stared blankly down at his own hands, absently noticing that the fingers of his right hand were nervously playing with the left sleeve of his tattered blue hoodie.

_Cough._

He loved this hoodie but not for the reasons everyone assumed. Everyone thought he wore it because he was going for the skater look, the casual attire a good foil for his rebellious streak but they couldn't be further from the truth.

_Cough. Cough._

The hoodie had once belonged to Tadashi. Aunt Cass had bought it for him several years ago and he'd loved it. He'd worn it often though not in the manner Hiro managed to wear it. Tadashi had made it look smart. For one, it had fit him, his broad shoulders and chest filling out the fabric in ways Hiro could only dream about. Secondly he'd always zipped it up and paired it with a nice pair of black jeans. Hiro had stolen the garment during one of Tadashi's school trips, the desire to have something that reminded him of his brother while he was away so strong that he couldn't resist the urge.

Tadashi had never asked for it back.

"Was it a dream?"

Hiro blinked, his thoughts once more brought back into the present by the sound of Tadashi's voice. He glanced up, question in his eyes.

Tadashi licked dry lips before rephrasing his question. "Did you also dream about… about a fire at the SFIT showcase?"

If his brain had been operating correctly, it probably would have thrown a few interesting errors and crashed but since that was not the case, it settled for hanging, all processing suspended in favour of staring at his brother in complete shock.

Tadashi reached out and weakly flicked his nose. "Close your mouth." A flicker of amusement entered his dark brown eyes. "You look like… "He paused to take a deep breath, "like a fish out of water."

Hiro closed his mouth with a soft click and scowled, forcing his brain back into gear in an attempt to process the surprising new revelation Tadashi had just dropped into his lap.

Dreams…

_Cough._

Tadashi had been having dreams about the showcase fire.

Hiro absently rubbed his throat.

Well, that explained a few things… Namely his presence at the SFIT showcase when he was supposed to be on an airplane headed elsewhere. Hiro had suspected that Tadashi was having nightmares about the fire. Those had already started in his previous time loop, after all, but they had been far too vague for Tadashi to take them seriously. That appeared to have changed this time sound. He hadn't realized that Tadashi's current set of dreams were accurate enough to lead him to conclude that the fire was linked to the SFIT showcase which raised a very important question: How much did Tadashi's subconscious mind really remember?

_Cough. Cough._

"You're not supposed to be out of bed are you?" Hiro blinked _again,_ his mind forced to play catch up once more. His silence was clearly enough of a confirmation for Tadashi to let the matter go, as he chose to change the topic instead of opting to pursue his original line of questioning.

"I'm fine." Hiro, replied, another flicker of guilt coursing through him as he sought to bury his slim form further onto the dark blue hoodie he was wearing.

"I can see your hospital gown beneath your hoodie." Tadashi pointed out, a knowing glint in his eyes.

Damn it.

Damn his brother's perceptive nature. Hiro had gone to a lot of effort to hide the fact that he was still wearing a hospital gown! Assuming zipping his hoodie up as far as it could go counted as a lot of effort, that is. "I'll be fine." He rephrased his earlier statement swallowing hard in a bid to keep his next cough down.

"Yes." Tadashi agreed, his brown eyes somehow managing to be reflect both mischief and concern. "Yes, you will be."

Wait…

Wait just one minute. Why was Tadashi agreeing with him so easily when…

"Mr. Hamada, what appears to be the prob…" A male nurse walked into Tadashi's room only to stumble to a halt a few steps in, his eyes quickly scanning the scene before him. "Young Mr. Hamada!" He rushed forward, heading straight towards the chair Hiro was slumped in. "What are you doing here?!" He reprimanded, coming to a halt beside him. "You're not supposed to be out of bed yet." Hiro tried to back away but had nowhere to flee when the nurse bent down to lift him into his arms. "Seriously! We have enough work on our hands as it is." The nurse continued his tirade even as he settled Hiro's slim form into his arms. "We don't need difficult patients like you adding to our work load." He turned and headed back towards the door.

Hiro whined in protest and attempted to wiggle out of the man's arms but it was all to no avail. A fresh wave of dizziness washed over him, bringing with it a new coughing spell that he could not fight off, the hoarse sound escaping him despite his best efforts to contain it, his body trembling in reaction to the painful spasms. "I'm fine." He repeated, his own mind not even registering the words. The response was a but an automatic defensive reaction to his discomfort.

He didn't like this. Any of it. He didn't like the hospital, the doctors, the nurses and most of all, the separation. He didn't want to be carried away, only to be trapped in cold white room while his brother was in another. He couldn't take it, his mind overwhelmed by the myriad of strange scents and sounds, with too much time to think, too much time to doubt his sanity, Tadashi's existence and the outcome he'd fought so hard to achieve.

"Come to think of it, who took off all your medical equipment?"

I did.

A flicker of pride coursed through him. He'd been the one to remove all the equipment the doctors had attached to him and not only had he managed to do it without hurting himself, he'd also managed to do it without alerting anyone. All those years working on enhancing Baymax's capabilities had really paid off. He knew more about that equipment than most people, including most of the doctors, paramedics and nurses that used it on a day to day basis and if they thought he was just going to quietly sit by and let them separate him from Tadashi they had another thing coming. Hiro was already planning to sneak out again, all he needed was…

Hiro finally managed to gain some leverage, lifting his head just far enough to direct one last desperate look in his brother's direction. It was supposed a silent plea, intended to express the sheer depths of his distress only it quickly turned into something else altogether, his train of thought completely derailed by the scene playing out before him.

Tadashi winked.

Tadashi actually had the audacity to wink at him, a cheeky smile spread across his lips. He then raised his right arm into the air, silently revealing the nurse call button still in his grasp.

Hiro glared at him in response.

If Tadashi thought Hiro was going to let him get away with that trick, _he_ had another thing coming.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YAY! I actually managed a second chapter this week! * Beams * Even though the flow of this chapter turned out very strange I really like it. It's a very stark indication of Hiro's current state of mind which is allowed to be a bit wonky given that he did suffer an impact to his head. Add Tadashi's slightly evil protective streak to that and my heart just gets all warm and fuzzy inside… while managing to ache at the same time. Just picture it, people, picture the evil glint in Tadashi's eyes as the nurse carries Hiro out of the room! XD XD XD


	44. Mischief and Madness

**Mischief and Madness**

"Oi, Hamada. I hear the doctors have finally given up on trying to keep you away from Tadashi." Gogo's voice filtered through the doorway of the hospital room Hiro now officially shared with Tadashi, giving Hiro just enough time to compose himself. He quickly picked up a screwdriver and pretended to scrutinize the bot pieces he had scattered on the hospital bed tray before him aiming to give the impression that he was too engrossed in his work to notice the gang's arrival.

Gogo marched into the room, waving about a bouquet of flowers only to stumble to a halt the moment she spotted the older Hamada sibling.

Hiro dipped his head and smirked, hiding the expression behind stray strands of hair.

_And in three… two... one…_

"What on earth happened to you?" She demanded, so surprised by the sight that met her gaze that she remained completely oblivious to the fact that Honey Lemon nearly walked right into her.

Fortunately for Gogo, Honey Lemon was naturally graceful and managed to deftly slip past her before she too encountered the sight that had shocked Gogo into a standstill. "Oh my." Honey Lemon breathed also coming to a stop. She raised her hands and covered her mouth, her eyes wide behind her large spectacles, flickers of amusement dancing in them.

Hiro understood her amusement and had to fight really hard to keep his innocent façade in place, the game only half way complete. He picked up a random bot part and bit his lip struggling to bite back the laughter that was bubbling up within. The fact that his expression could be interpreted as intense concentration granted him a momentary reprieve before completely giving everything away.

_Two down…Two to go._

Wasabi and Fred entered the room together, engrossed in a conversation that was rather abruptly cut short the moment they realized Honey Lemon and Gogo were still lingering in the doorway. Wasabi, blinked, his eyes large and owlish and Fred… well Fred's reaction was every bit as priceless and Hiro has suspected it would be. He took one look at Tadashi and then burst out into raucous laughter, hunching over to cradle his abdomen as he did so. "Dude, your face!" Fred raised an arm to point at Tadashi's face, "what happened to you face?" And with those words he eliminated at least a fraction of the confusion that currently filled the room.

Or so he probably thought.

Tadashi blinked and reached up to run a hand down over his face the movement doing nothing to eliminate his ignorance. "What's wrong with my face?" He asked far to innocently for someone who really should know better. I mean, Tadashi _lived_ with Hiro, right? He should at least be a little suspicious? But then again, this was Tadashi they were talking about and his brother was nothing if not a little naive. It was only natural that his reaction would be a little innocent at first, and that innocence was nearly Hiro's undoing. Nearly being the key operative term…

Hiro bit down harder on his lip, and ignoring the taste of blood that filtered into his mouth. He couldn't afford to give the game away… not yet anyway and even though it was an enormous feat of will power he somehow managed to contain his own laughter.

"It's… it's… it's..." Fred continued to laugh, fighting to breathe between words. "You need to look… ha, ha, ha… look in a... ha, ha, ha, mirror."

The moment Fred mentioned a mirror it was Game Over. Tadashi shot Hiro a glare and then turned to face Honey Lemon. The silent request in his eyes was clear. Interpreting it correctly, Honey Lemon stepped forward and handed him her cell phone, turning the camera onto selfie mode so he could see his own face on the screen. "What the…." Tadashi's jaw dropped in shock, leaving him speechless for but a moment before his brain finally made the connection. "HIRO!" Tadashi's outcry echoed throughout the room wiping the last of Hiro's control clean away.

Abandoning all pretense, Hiro burst out into full blown laughter and the sound of his amusement mingled with Fred's. Priceless. Tadashi's reaction was absolutely priceless and well worth the effort Hiro had put into the prank. Remaining awake longer than Tadashi was not an easy task. Neither was appropriating a permanent marker. He'd had to dodge more than one nurse in his bid to liberate the required tool from the nurse's station but the reward more than outweighed risk. Thankfully Tadashi was still fast asleep when he returned giving Hiro ample time to scrawl the *Henohenomoheji onto his face, leaving trails of black ink all over Tadashi's usually pristine features.

"How long has it been there?" Tadashi demanded, dropping Honey Lemon's cell phone onto his bed with a scowl, her giggle nearly lost in the rumbustious laughter that now filled the room.

"Since last night." Hiro admitted, clutching his sides as he fought for breath.

"You mean to tell me it's been here all day!" Tadashi's exclamation was filled with dismay.

"Yup." Hiro confirmed, still laughing. "You should have seen…." He gulped in a big breath, the need to oxygen suddenly rather dire. "You should have seen the nurses face when he walked in right after… ha, ha, ha, right after I was done! It was priceless!"

And it really had been. The nurse had reacted much like Honey Lemon had only his surprise had been followed by a silent questioning eyebrow directed at the culprit. Hiro had lifted his finger to his lips, silently asking the nurse to keep his secret. The nurse then proceeded to redeem all the points he had lost when he carried Hiro away from Tadashi's room following the buzzer incident, shaking his head before silently leaving the room.

Tadashi narrowed his eyes, threw off his sheets, slipped out of bed and then proceeded to march over to Hiro's side. Okay so it was more of a shuffle than a march but that was only a technicality. Hiro knew Tadashi was probably aiming for a march and also knew his brain probably shouldn't be preoccupied with evaluating Tadashi's gait when he should be focused on escaping Tadashi's inevitable wrath instead. But then again Hiro's brain never really worked the way it was supposed to and his preoccupation with his amusement lost him the opportunity to slip out of his own bed before Tadashi managed to slip in beside him.

"You little shit." Tadashi reached over and pulled Hiro into his arms in order to give him a noogie. "So this is why you have been snapping cell phone pictures of me all day!" He continued to ruffle Hiro's hair, his touch careful in order to accommodate both their injuries and it was sheer bliss.

Hiro giggled, the sound pure and free as it danced in the air and even though the sound of his own unrestrained laughter was foreign to him he didn't care. He wanted this. He wanted this moment of pure happiness to wash away all the grief he still harbored in his heart and even though he knew it wasn't possible, for one brief moment in time, it did not matter, because he was happy. Tadashi was here and his deep love and affection was working like a soothing balm on the still broken shards of Hiro's heart.

"Let me guess." Tadashi stopped giving the noogie and switched to running his fingers soothingly through Hiro's hair instead, his soft touch calming Hiro's laughter. "You're also the reason I can't find my cell phone?"

Hiro leaned into the touch, carefully resting his back against Tadashi's bandaged chest before peering up at his brother, a mischievous smirk still etched onto his features. "Maybe."

Tadashi shook his head, an affectionate gracing his lips. "Hand it over then." He held out his right hand, his left still tangled in Hiro's hair.

Hiro reached under his blankets and pulled out Tadashi's cell phone, moving to silently hand it over only to be rather rudely interrupted by a falling bouquet. "Okay, now that we've managed to solve the mystery of what happened to Tadashi's face, can we get to the actual visitation part of our visit?" Gogo asked dropping down into one of the chairs that was located between Tadashi's and Hiro's beds. "I hear you guys are finally getting released."

Hiro blinked down at the brightly colored flowers that now occupied his lap and was just about to direct a glare at Gogo who had dropped them there when Tadashi smoothly removed them. He lifted them up and placed them on the stand besides Hiro's bed before resuming the task of running his fingers through Hiro's hair thus calming the raging beast before it had a chance to rear its ugly head. The knowing glint that was present in his eyes when Hiro chose to look up instead clearly communicated Tadashi knew exactly what he was doing. "Doctor Pollock has told us that if all goes well, we can leave tomorrow morning." Tadashi confirmed. "But I won't be able to attend classes for another month or so. They want my burns to heal a bit more before I put any more strain on them."

"It's a good thing medical technology has come such a long way." Wasabi said, walking over to stand behind Gogo. "If you look after them properly you'll probably be able to get away with barely any scars."

"I don't mind the scars." Tadashi said, trailing his fingers over Hiro's ear. "They're a small price to pay for Hiro's life."

_A small price to pay for Hiro's life._

Tadashi's words stirred the ache that lingering deep in Hiro's heart, waking a surge of conflicted emotions that Hiro couldn't even begin to express. The shadows of his secrets reared their heads throwing his mind into turmoil once more because Tadashi couldn't be more mistaken even if he tried.

Tadashi had not saved Hiro's life. Not initially anyway. He had endangered it. Hiro wouldn't have been trapped in that building in the first place if not for the fact that he'd rushed back in to save his brother's life but he couldn't tell Tadashi that. He couldn't drop the burden of that knowledge onto his brother's shoulders and so it would remain his own cross to bear. To make things even worse, his interference had led to Callaghan's escape. The gang had been too focused on saving their own to fulfil the original mission objective and even though they had managed to save both Hiro and Tadashi it meant that Callaghan was still out there and he had Hiro's microbots to boot.

If he wanted to be entirely honest he would have to admit that their mission had actually ended in failure but it didn't matter. All that mattered was that this time round Tadashi had rushed into the fire to save _Hiro_ and not Callaghan and somehow, by some strange twist of fate they had both survived to tell the tale.

"We're just glad you were both able to get out." Honey Lemon hedged, exchanging a pointed glance with Hiro. Her thoughts had clearly taken a similar route to his own.

"Me too." Tadashi agreed, his features once more marred by a puzzled frown. "Though I really don't know how that happened. I was convinced we were going to die. There really didn't look like there was any way out and then the wall came tumbling down. For one moment there, I thought I had completely lost my mind. I thought I saw a giant flying lizard."

Fred gulped and exchanged a pointed glace with Wasabi before turning to face Tadashi once more, an exaggerated smile plastered on his face. "A giant flying lizard? Your mind must have been playing tricks on you." Fred casually sauntered over towards the bed, the movement a touch too exaggerated to seem natural. "Lizards can't fly. This isn't one of my comic books you know. You guys are always telling me you can't turn me into one because its 'not science'," Fred inserted the usual air quotes that came with the phrase, "Though if you've changed your mind…"

Tadashi groaned and ran a hand over his own face, shaking his head in disbelief. "We can't turn you into a giant fire breathing lizard, Fred. Seriously. What kind of quack science do you think we practice?" He glanced up, his brown eyes locking with Fred's blue. "It was probably just some strange hallucination likely brought on by too much smoke inhalation."

Fred's face fell, the expression every bit as overdone and exaggerated as his previous one but thankfully Tadashi did not appear to notice. "You're right, man. It's a crazy idea but it would be soo awesome if it was possible, don't you think?" He danced around on the spot, raising his hands up to his chest. "Just imagine it, the sheer bliss of defying gravity as you leap up into the air," Fred jumped up. "followed by the rush of tumbling down. You could twist," He twirled around on one leg. "and turn and when the moment is right breath fire, creating a blazing tornado around you as you land, your skin impervious to the flames! You'd be invinci…"

"Fred, stop!" Hiro's cry echoed throughout the room, "Just stop it." abruptly cutting Fred's excited rant short and the silence that followed was more than a touch uncomfortable.

Tadashi was pale, his hands lying still and forgotten in Hiro's hair and it was all Fred's fault. Tadashi had flinched the moment he mentioned the flames and his body had stiffened against Hiro's, his heartbeat beating a rapid rhythm in his chest. He was lost, his breath was shallow and his eyes… his eyes bore the shadows of nightmares both real and imagined.

"Tadashi…" Hiro whispered, reaching up to cup one of his brother's cheeks. "Tadashi, just breathe." He trailed his fingers down Tadashi's face, over his chin, along the curve of his neck and down over his collar bone before resting his hand lightly on Tadashi's chest, tracking the rhythm of his still rapidly beating heart. "It's over…You're okay… We're okay."

Tadashi blinked, the shadows in his eyes shifted and his breathe escaped him in a rush as he came back to himself, shaking off the memories Fred's words had inadvertently triggered. "Oi, bonehead," He ruffled Hiro's hair. "You can stop giving me that look now. I'm okay." He said reassuringly, but Hiro knew better. He could feel it. He could feel the slight tremble in Tadashi's hands and could still see the flickers of darkness in Tadashi's eyes.

"You better be." Hiro retorted, easily going along with the lie his brother was trying to create. Some things were, after all, better left alone. "I didn't go to all the effort to scribble all over your face only to have you conk out on me. Permanent ink is expensive, you know. And not that easy to come by in a hospital."

Tadashi's jaw dropped, his eyes wide and the shadows in them were momentarily wiped clean by the realization that suddenly dawned upon him. "You used a permanent marker?!" Flickers of horror and disbelief danced in his brother's dark brown gaze and even though Hiro knew it meant he was in all kinds of trouble, he didn't really care because Tadashi was here and for one brief moment, he wasn't haunted by fire.

Now all he had to do, was make sure the moment lasted just a little bit longer. Drawing on all the acting skills he had acquired during the course of his life time, he pulled out a cocky smirk and aimed for the performance of a lifetime. "Nothing but the best for my big brother you know." He retorted, ignoring his own lingering pain in favor of focusing on the mischief he wanted to cause in order to lighten the mood.

 _That's it, Hiro. Just pretend._ "It wouldn't be any fun if you could just wash it off _." Just pretend everything is okay._ "I had to go to a lot of effort to get hold of that marker you know." _Maybe if you pretend long enough…_ "I had to stay up way past my bedtime." _If you lie long enough…_ "I also had to dodge all the night staff _." If you manage to get everyone to believe…"_ Not an easy task, let me tell you but I managed it." _Perhaps…_ "I managed it because I can do anything." _Perhaps one day…_ "Anything for you…" _You'll believe it too._

_Only that day… is not today._

He failed. Hiro failed to convince anyone in the room, least of all Tadashi or himself. He failed to instigate the outraged reaction he had been aiming for and instead found himself wrapped up in Tadashi's arms, his brothers face buried in the crook of his neck. He was crying, silent tears pouring down his face and for once in his life he was not alone. Tadashi was crying too, the warm liquid of his tears soaking into Hiro's hospital gown. "It's okay, Hiro." He whispered. "It's okay to break just a little. We'll be okay. We still have each other. As long as we still have each other we can face anything the world throws at us. Together. I'll protect you. I promise." And with those words he shattered what little remained of Hiro's self-control.

It bubbled, it boiled and suddenly all of his pain simply overflowed, breaking past the fragile walls he'd desperately put up in order to contain it. He opened his lips, fighting for breath, fighting for reason only to continue to lose, the anguish in his voice tearing the silence that had filled the room moments after his brother's promise apart and that was the last thing he remembered, his brain shutting down in order to give his body space to grieve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so not where I intended this chapter to go. Hiro's attempt at lightening the mood was supposed to be successful. Tadashi was supposed to lock Hiro in a headlock and ruffle his hair as punishment for using permanent ink. Apparently Tadashi and Hiro both had other ideas.
> 
> I apologize for the delay… I've been in a really bad head space recently and just didn't have the heart to face this for a while. My heart still very much belongs to this piece and I have no intention of abandoning it. I'd like to thank everyone for your continual support and hope you guys will remain patient with me for a little while longer while I attempt to work my way through everything that has currently left me feeling unsettled. I hope you enjoyed this update 3 3 3
> 
> *Henohenomoheji: he (へ), no (の), he (へ), no (の), mo (も), he (へ), and ji (じ) is a face drawn by Japanese schoolchildren using hiragana characters. The first two he are the eyebrows, the two no are the eyes, the mo is a nose, and the last he is the mouth. The outline of the face is made by the character ji, its two short strokes forming the ear or cheek. [Wikipedia]


	45. Tadashi: Flashes of Anguish

**Tadashi: Flashes of Anguish**

"So how are my two college men doing, today?!" Aunt Cass's cheerful voice echoed through the hallway clearly announcing her arrival to anyone that was not already half deaf or half dead and on any another day it would have pulled smile from Tadashi's lips, but today was not any other day.

Tadashi was still lying in Hiro's bed, cradling his brothers slim form against his chest and he wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible. He was struggling, struggling to process the sheer intensity of Hiro's mental breakdown and his own powerlessness to stop it. Hiro's break had scared him and his mind had been too shocked by the intensity of the anguished cry that had filled the hospital room to really begin to process it.

He didn't understand it. He couldn't figure out what could have possibly triggered such a reaction and that lack in understanding meant he didn't know how to fix it. He didn't know how to help his baby brother and that realization was a bitter pill to swallow.

"I hope you guys are super hungry!" Aunt Cass slipped into their room, cradling a basket that was no doubt filled to the brim with her famous baked goods, "Because I may have brought half of my café along with me." She raised the basket in her arms with a wide smile, so much happiness radiating off of her that it was almost a pity to quell it.

Almost being the key operative term.

"Shh." Tadashi placed a finger to his lips, helping his little brother in the only way he knew how. "Hiro's sleeping." He informed his Aunt, silently hoping she would understand what he was trying to communicate. Hiro needed the sleep, even if it did little to heal his clearly wounded heart.

"Oh, sorry." Aunt Cass dropped her tone to a whisper. "I'm just so excited." She skipped happily on the spot before dropping the basket of goodies down onto the bed stand. "And so very, very proud." She glanced down at Hiro, pride and affection practically radiating off of her and it took Tadashi a moment to put two and two together.

He blinked, Aunt Cass's greeting and the implications thereof finally slotting into place. "Hiro made it into SFIT?" He queried, on a whisper, unable to keep his own excitement out of his voice. Even though he wasn't happy that his brother had entered the SFIT showcase behind his back, he couldn't help the flicker of happiness that Hiro's achievement stirred within him.

Aunt Cass nodded, still beaming. "I received the admission paperwork this morning." She danced on the spot raising her arms to her chest in glee. "I'm so proud. Two college men in the family and nothing but great things ahead."

Nothing but great things ahead?

Tadashi glanced down at the sleeping form sprawled across his lap, his Aunt's words stirring an ache deep in his heart and wondered if there was any truth to her words at all. He couldn't shake off the memory of the grief and pain that had spilled past Hiro's lips such a short time ago. "I'm not so sure about that." He said, running his hands through Hiro's hair, the motion more for himself than for Hiro.

The joy on his Aunt's face was marred by the puzzled frown that fleetingly rested upon her features before returning beneath the force of her eternal optimism. "He'll be okay." She reached over to ruffle Tadashi's hair. "You both will. We're Hamada's and Hamada's always stick together. One little fire isn't going to change that."

Tadashi winced, instinctively shying away from the flickers of amber flames dancing in the corner of his mind. He couldn't afford to lose himself in them, in those memories of heat, pain and eminent death. Not now, not when he had more pressing concerns weighing on his heart. "I don't think it's that simple." Tadashi whispered hoarsely, avoiding Aunt Cass's gaze all while trying to ignore the little voice in his head that was calling him a hypocrite. How could he expect his little brother to face the nightmares that were clearly haunting him when Tadashi was not willing to face his own? "He's hiding something from us. Something big and it's broken him." Tadashi raised his gaze once more, silently pleading for answers he knew his Aunt couldn't possibly possess. "It started before. He started behaving strangely long before the showcase fire and I can't seem to shake the feeling that he's gotten himself involved in something he really shouldn't have."

Aunt Cass's lips parted in shock, flickers of fear coursing through her eyes. "Do you think he's involved in some kind of gang related activities?" She raised her hands to her lips. "Because of his bot-fighting?"

Tadashi blinked, surprised that Aunt Cass even knew about the bot-fights. Threatening to tell Aunt Cass what Hiro was up to had always been one of Tadashi's favorite blackmail tactics and even though it hadn't worked as well as it could have, it had always been a useful threat to have in his repertoire. "You know about his bot-fighting?" He asked, unable to keep his surprise out of his tone.

"Of course I know about his bot-fighting." Aunt Cass, scoffed. "What kind of parent do you take me for? Even though it may not look like it, I generally have a good grasp on what the two of you are up to."

"Then why didn't you say anything?" Tadashi asked, still struggling to comprehend this latest revelation. All this time he'd been under the impression that they had managed to keep Aunt Cass in the dark about Hiro's less than legal midnight activities as well as Tadashi's role in trying to manage them.

"Because I knew you had everything under control." Aunt Cass responded, sadness creeping into her gaze. "He listens to you more than he does me." She explained. "You're his family and he looks up to you."

"You're also his family." Tadashi pointed out softly.

She shook her head, her expression melancholic. "Not like you, I'm not."

"Aunt Cass," Tadashi paused and waited for her to lift her eyes before continuing. "You may not be our biological mother but for all intents and purposes, you are our mother. You took us in and raised us like your own. You know that and we know that."

"Thanks, kiddo." She reached out to ruffle his hair, a wan smile gracing her lips. "You always know the right thing to say to make people feel better."

Tadashi bit his lip, her words stirring hurt within him once more because for once in his life it wasn't true. He'd always been confident in his instinctive ability to read people. Had always relied on it to know when his baby brother was hiding something from him and had made full use of it to make sure his family was safe and protected only that ability appeared to have failed him when he needed it the most. "Do you…" Tadashi dropped his gaze, nervously licking his lips as he sought to expose even more of his uncertainty to the one who really was his mother in all senses of the word. "Do you know what's going on with him now?" He asked tentatively, glancing up once more, desperately seeking guidance.

Aunt Cass glanced down at Hiro before looking back up at Tadashi, the expression in her eyes answering his question even before she opened her lips to reply. "I think he's just growing up." She said, her words causing Tadashi's heart to drop because she didn't know. Aunt Cass, like him, did not have any idea what was going on in Hiro's head. "He's fourteen you know. It's a difficult age. I don't think he's involved in anything dangerous. He's probably just struggling to define who he is. You know, like all teenagers. It's normal for him to be a little emotionally unstable."

And that was her biggest mistake. Hiro was anything but normal and couldn't be judged using the same logic that could be applied to other kids his age. "Aunt Cass…" Tadashi tried to voice the uncertainty that continued to course through him only to find himself at a complete loss for words.

"Don't worry so much about it." She ruffled his hair once more, her gesture filled with affection and reassurance. "He'll figure it out. He's stronger than you give him credit for, you know."

Strong?

Tadashi glanced down at the slim form still cradled in his lap and took a moment to really look at his brother. Hiro was small. His slim shoulders, gangly figure and awkward gait made him appear a lot younger than he really was, often working against him. It was one of the reasons he'd been bullied so much. His elfin features didn't help matters much either, only serving to highlight the fragile appearance his small stature tended to give him. The fact that this happened to be paired with a big brain with a propensity for getting into trouble only made the combination worse making Tadashi wonder if Aunt Cass really knew what she was talking about.

He couldn't see it. He couldn't believe that the baby brother he'd spent a lifetime protecting may be stronger than he gave him credit for because if he was… if Hiro could really take care of his problems by himself… where did that leave Tadashi? "I worry about him, Aunt Cass." Tadashi admitted, giving in to his protective streak once more. "He's really impulsive." He ran his fingers through Hiro's hair. "He doesn't think before he acts and it often gets him into trouble."

"He's a little like someone else I know." Aunt Cass replied, pointedly giving Tadashi a look. "And he kind of turned out ok."

Tadashi glanced up, confusion in his eyes. "Someone else you know."

She pointedly quirked an eyebrow, remaining silent in order to give him time to find the answer to his unspoken question for himself. And he did… the realization that she was talking about him drawing a flush from his cheeks. "I was never as reckless as Hiro!" He protested.

"Oh, really? Then why was I called to your school more times than I can count because you were caught fighting?"

"That's because they were bullying Hi…"

"And who was it that destroyed my kitchen trying to bake cookies when he wasn't old enough to know how to use the equipment yet?"

"That's because Hiro was sick and really wanted…"

"And who ran into a burning building at a showcase he wasn't supposed to be attending to begin with, putting his own life at great risk before even confirming whether his actions were necessary or not?"

"That's because I needed to save Hi…oh" Tadashi blinked, his mind finally registering the point his Aunt was trying to make. Maybe he really was every bit as impulsive as Hiro was. The incidents his Aunt were referring to were really only the tip of the ice berg when it came to the lengths he'd gone to simply to keep his baby brother safe. He'd gotten into a lot of trouble at school, readily beating up anyone that even looked at his baby brother wrong and really had damaged Aunt Cass's kitchen, on more than one occasion mind you. The worst incident had occurred when he was nine. Hiro was sick and had spent half the day begging Tadashi for chocolate chip cookies. Upon discovering that Aunt Cass didn't have any in stock he'd attempted to make some himself only to set the kitchen on fire when he accidentally left the oven gloves in the oven along with the cookie tray. Fortunately, it has been a small fire that he'd managed to extinguish rather quickly but Aunt Cass had needed to purchase a new stove. "I guess we know where he gets it from, then." Tadashi's reply was wry.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, you know. It simply proves that you're passionate and passion is not a bad trait to possess."

"It is when it gets you into more trouble than you can handle." Tadashi pulled a face.

"Only you've managed to handle all the trouble it's gotten into you so far." Aunt Cass pointed out.

Flickers of flames danced at the edge of his mind, visions of death, blood and failure not far behind as he remembered the weight of a lifeless body lying slack in his arms. His nightmares were still lingering in his mind, mocking him with their continual presence in his heart and Tadashi wondered, he really wondered if there was not more truth in them than he'd be willing to admit. "I'm not so sure about that." He said hoarsely, clenching Hiro's hair in his hand.

"That's okay." Aunt Cass reached over to embrace him. "I am and I have more than enough faith for both of us."

Faith.

Complete trust or confidence in something or _someone._

It was such a simple definition for such a complicated feeling and couldn't begin to even scratch the surface of the strength such belief took. You needed to be strong, incredibly strong in order to maintain it and for once in his life Tadashi was glad to know that she was there, ready and willing to pick up the slack. "Thanks, Aunt Cass." He whispered, releasing his death grip on Hiro's hair in order to return the embrace.

"That's what I'm here for." She continued, withdrawing a moment later. "Now that that's taken care of." She clapped her hands in glee. "I brought my boys some delicious baked goods to snack on." She reached into the basket and began to pull out various wrapped pastries, piling them onto the bed. "All homemade, of course. Nothing but the best for my college men. I figured you're probably sick of the bland fare they serve here by now and really wanted to celebrate Hiro's acceptance into SFIT but I didn't know what to bring so I just grabbed one of everything." She continued to ramble as she unpacked the basket, speaking more to herself than to Tadashi.

Tadashi drowned the detail of the conversation out and let his thoughts drift once more. Despite his Aunt's best efforts to reassure him and the wisdom in her words, his mind and heart were far from appeased. He couldn't shake it. He simply couldn't shake the feeling that something was very wrong and the familiar soothing rhythm of his Aunt's voice only served to highlight the turmoil of his thoughts even further.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this chapter is a little short but I didn't have a lot to accomplish in it. I wanted to write one more chapter from Tadashi's perspective before moving the story forward once more. His interaction with Aunt Cass in the second half was a pleasant surprise and I kind of wanted to end on that special moment, even though she didn't succeed in her goal to reassure him. Also... LMAO! TADASHI! Tadashi destroyed Aunt Cass's stove! So funny! XD XD XD


	46. Inescapable

**Inescapable**

"Would you look at that, the shrimp actually managed to get away from his guard dog." Gogo's dry remark met him the moment he stepped off of Baymax's back, the thrill of finally being in the air once more, still coursing through his veins. It had been a long time since Hiro had experienced the freedom flying gave him and he was only just beginning to realize how much he missed it.

"Yeah, I finally made it." Hiro agreed walking over towards Gogo, his purple armor gleaming in the sunlight. He chose to let the shrimp comment slide, not really willing to argue a point that was in essence true. He was, and always would be short, after all. "And you wouldn't believe how hard it was to get away." He added with a scowl. "Tadashi has been watching my every move. I go to the kitchen to make a sandwich and he conveniently develops a craving for coffee. I try to work on projects in our room and he suddenly wants to lie down and rest. I decide to sneak off to the garage and he decides he's left something there that he urgently needs. And if all of that wasn't enough, he even follows me to the toilet! The toilet, I tell you, the toilet! He pretends to straighten picture frames that are already dead straight. Dead straight, I tell you!" Hiro exclaimed, waving his arms about. He was rambling. He knew he was rambling but he didn't care. He'd been struggling to get away for days and really needed to vent his frustrations. "It's crazy!"

"Hiro…" His name rolled smoothly off of Honey Lemon's tongue and just the sound of it was enough to calm a small portion of his frayed nerves because he knew her next words were probably going to be filled with her usual wisdom and understanding. "I know you're frustrated but you need to put yourself in his shoes. You've both just lived through a very traumatic event and he's just worried about you. Just give him some time to deal with it all."

Honey Lemon was right. Hiro knew she was right. However, time was something they didn't really have a lot of at this stage. Callaghan was out there, intent on vengeance and each minute that passed only brought him closer to fulfilling his plan. "Yeah, but he should be resting." Hiro grumbled. "He's the one currently nursing a bunch of burn wounds, not me. My only injuries were some smoke inhalation and a bump to the head and he's acting like he's worried that I'm going to disappear on him."

"Maybe, that's because he is."

"What?" Hiro blinked, his brain grinding to a standstill. Honey Lemon's words threw him off guard and it took him a moment to process that she was disagreeing with him.

"He's probably watching you so closely because he _is_ worried you're going to disappear on him." Honey Lemon clarified misinterpreting Hiro's confusion. She obviously thought he hadn't understood her statement and was working really hard to bridge the gap only he had understood what she was saying. Well, the individual words made sense. What didn't make sense was the _why_ of it. Why was Tadashi afraid that Hiro was going to disappear when he hadn't lived through the traumatic events Hiro had? Or, more accurately, didn't _remember_ living through any of them.

"But... but why?" His confusion slipped out before he could do anything to stop it, his now rather infamous mind to mouth filter so broken it may as well not exist. Wait… maybe it didn't exist? All this time he'd thought it was a software issue when in actual fact it may have been a hardware issue all along. Go figure.

"Okay, so let's break things down." Honey Lemon calmly switched tactics, clearly intending to guide Hiro to the conclusion she had already reached. "Tadashi doesn't know about any of this, does he?" She pointed at the team that was now gathered on Akuma Island, fully decked out and ready to battle. Although a bit dented and scratched following their altercation at the SFIT showcase, their armor still managed to shine, Gogo's yellow complimenting the green in Wasabi's and Fred's suits and Honey Lemon's pink serving as an interesting contrast.

Hiro shook his head, the gears in his mind already turning. He suspected he already knew where Honey lemon was going with all of this but decided to remain silent, carefully processing the information she was giving him.

"He doesn't know that you've decided to form a super hero team. He doesn't know that you've dragged us into it. He doesn't know that you've stolen and reprogrammed his final year project and he doesn't know that you've decided to hunt down some kind of super villain. So it's a little unfair to expect him to understand where you're coming from, don't you think?"

Honey Lemon's words stirred a flash hurt within him triggering a defensive reaction that in turn spurred an objection. "I can't tell him any of this because…" Only he was not given the chance to voice it fully.

Honey Lemon raised a finger forestalling the rest of Hiro's protest. "We know why you've decided not to tell him anything and even though we don't entirely agree with you, we've decided to respect your decision. For now, at least. We're doing a lot of things Tadashi would disagree with. He's really big on following the rules which sometimes works against him but he has a big heart and is right more often than most of us would care to admit but I digress. According to him, you nearly died in that showcase fire." Honey Lemon paused for effect, the fire and conviction in her eyes piercing Hiro right to the core. "He somehow managed to find out that you were presenting at the SFIT showcase. Probably from your Aunt. This likely drove him to rush over to campus only to arrive to a scene that was probably straight out of some kind of nightmare."

_Did you also dream about a fire at the SFIT showcase?_

Honey Lemon's words hit home. More that she would ever realize because Hiro knew Tadashi had been having dreams about the showcase fire and that really bothered Hiro. He didn't want Tadashi to remember. Not the fire, not the pain and most of all not the agony of dying over and over again. One mentally unstable Hamada was more than enough after all.

"He probably spent some time frantically searching for you. When he couldn't find you, he assumed you were still trapped inside the burning building. He then ran in to rescue you and you know what happened after that. If Baymax hadn't told us which way the two of you were headed, we never would have gotten to the two of you in time."

Never would have gotten to the two of you in time…

Amber flames flared to life in his mind, flickering, dancing and taunting him with their presence. Wispy tendrils of agony reached out and latched onto his skin, ravenous and unforgiving in their bid to devour his very essence. They stripped him bare, tearing through skin, muscle and bone but none of that mattered because the physical pain couldn't begin to compare to the emotional and mental strain. He was dying, drowning in agony and despair as he fought to retain what little sanity he still had left. He'd failed. He'd failed to save his brother again and again and that failure was causing his brother pain. If only he'd gotten things right the first time, if only he'd run into that building instead of Tadashi, if only he hadn't wasted a year of his life bot fighting… if only he didn't exist…

"Breathe." A familiar voice filtered into his panic stricken mind, its tone calm and collected. "Long and slow. In through your nose." Hiro breathed in, air rushing into his lungs, filling them to capacity as he subconsciously began to follow the gentle instructions that were being directed at him. "Now count to three." One… two… three… whoosh. His breathe escaped him through parted lips a mere moment before he was given the instruction to do so. "And breathe out through your mouth." He knew this routine. Had done it countless times before and the sheer familiarity of it grounded and stabilized him once more.

He was in Baymax's arms, surrounded by their familiar gentle strength and it took him a moment to realize that he was slumped against the healthcare companion's chest. "Thanks Baymax." He whispered, gathering his senses.

"You are my patient. Your well being is my primary concern." Baymax's response soothed him, giving him the strength to stand. Pushing against the healthcare companion's armor, Hiro regained his feet and turned to face the rest of the gang once more, squaring his shoulders in determination only to pause in reaction to the horror he could see spread across Honey Lemon's features.

"I'm sorry." Honey Lemon whispered. "Oh Hiro, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean…"

And this time it was Hiro's turn to silence her. "It's okay, Honey." He licked his lips and made his way to her side. "It's complicated but…" He leaned in and wrapped his arms around her waist, embracing her in a bid to comfort both her and himself. "You are not wrong. I need to give Tadashi time to deal with all of this."

"I think…" Honey Lemon paused and he could feel the nervous tension in her body. "I think he's not the only one that needs time to deal with all of this." The words escaped her in a rush and she too offered comfort, lightly returning Hiro's embrace.

Hiro allowed himself a moment, reveling in the warmth of her arms and the affection she was offering him before squaring his shoulders once more and withdrawing. As unexpected and touching as the moment was they really didn't have the time for it. "Okay, now that we've got that out of the way…" He cleared his throat, shifting awkwardly while his mind scurried to work past the unexpected confrontation and focus back onto the task at hand. "We have a mission to accomplish." Hiro turned to face the entrance to the secret lab located on Akuma island only to blink in surprise at the chaos that met his gaze. The ground was sliced, charred and covered in a myriad of colorful goo forming a very distinct and very familiar circle.

"Um… we encountered a Pigeon." Wasabi volunteered awkwardly, interpreting Hiro's silence as a question.

"I see." Hiro replied, fighting really hard to keep his expression bland only to lose to the smile that made its way to his lips. Some things, it seemed, really didn't change.

"We, uh… fought it off." Wasabi continued to volunteer information. "We can't… uh… have it contaminating the crime scene right? It's very unhygienic."

The smile continued to spread, transforming into an all-out grin. "Unhygienic? I see…" Hiro continued his tacit agreement enjoying the sight of Wasabi awkwardly trying to explain their way out of the situation far too much to give him an easy way out of the conversation. Unfortunately, Gogo was not of the same opinion.

"Oh just tell him the damned bird scared us and move on with it." She growled, marching past everyone to make her way over towards the door. "So, genius," She directed her next statement at Hiro. "How do we get in here?"

A flicker of regret coursed through him when Gogo ended the awkward moment but didn't linger long as his attention was once more brought back to the task at hand highlighting a very important question that he really didn't want to face. Why was he letting himself get distracted so easily?

The regret was quickly followed by a sudden rush of anxiety that flooded in to answer his unspoken question mere moments after it occurred to him. He was scared. Hiro was terrified to enter that building. The uncertainty of what could possibly await them there was eating away at his core because he knew it couldn't possibly be the same. There was no way it was going to be the same, right? Not after the drastic change saving Tadashi's life must have had on his current timeline?

He licked dry lips, rested his palms on the door and took a deep breath, gathering the courage to set the next scene into motion. "Wasabi gets to use his lasers to cut through the door."

"I do?" Wasabi squeaked, looking like a deer caught in headlights when everyone turned to face him.

"You do." Hiro confirmed before taking a deep breath and stepping away from the door once more. He fell silent, his body taught as he continued to fight the fear and anxiety that threatened to overwhelm him and waited… waiting for his words to sink in and for Wasabi to gather the courage to do what he needed to do.

Surprisingly, he didn't have to wait very long. Drawing on the inner courage Hiro already knew he possessed, Wasabi stepped forward and sliced through the door. The blade cut through the metal with ease and the scent of molten metal quickly filled the air in reaction to the awkward circle Wasabi was cutting into the door and its frame. It was perfectly imperfect. The tool Wasabi had worked so hard on proved its efficiency while at the same time advertising Wasabi's lack of art skills and it had to be driving Wasabi crazy. The circle was far from perfect and barely even resembled a round object but it was sufficient, a single re-adjustment effectively granting them access onto government property they probably should not be trespassing on.

Note to self… don't let Wasabi know we're trespassing on the grounds of a major secret government experiment.

"Six intrepid friends led by Fred, their leader, Fred." As expected, Fred began to sing only a few steps into the oppressive silence that dominated the facility, his voice softly echoing softly through the space around them.

"Fred's angels. Hmm, hmm, hmm. Fred's angels. Hmm, hmm, hmm." Hiro joined him, the lyrics deeply ingrained into his mind. Fred turned to him and beamed like a maniac, not even surprised that Hiro already knew the words to a song he was basically inventing on the spot. "Harnessing the power of the sun with the ancient amulet they found in the attic." Their combined voice slowly got louder, the excitement in Fred's tone an interesting compliment to the nostalgia in Hiro's. "Hmm, hmm, hmm. The amulet is green. Hmm, hmm, hmm. It's probably an emerald…"

"When did the two of you have time to come up with that stupid song?" Gogo growled, cutting the song off in the exact same place Wasabi had all those timelines ago. "If you have enough time to invent theme songs, maybe you should focus on something more constructive instead."

"I'll have you know that I just invented this song right now!" Fred retorted, puffing his chest out defensively. "And it's not stupid! It's ingenious. It takes a special kind of genius to be able to invent such awesome lyrics basically on the spot!"

"Really?" Gogo's reply was skeptic. "Then how does the shrimp know the lyrics to your so called 'improvised'" She threw air quotes in for good measure, "song?"

"I thought that much was obvious!" Fred continued, not even phased by Gogo's question. "Hiro's a time traveler. He must have heard me invent it in one of the other timelines he's lived through! Right?" He turned to Hiro, seeking confirmation.

Hiro gave him a wan smile and chose to neither confirm nor deny the statement. They had, after all, had this conversation before and if the gang still didn't believe him after all the evidence he had displayed to support his claims, additional arguments were unlikely to make a difference.

"Hiro?" His name was rolling off of Honey Lemon's tongue once more, her Latino accent lending it an interesting sound and that where she left it, leaving the rest of her question unspoken.

He should ignore it; pretend he didn't notice or didn't understand only he couldn't. He understood her unspoken question and even though he knew he was probably wasting his breath trying to fight a cause he had already fought before; he couldn't help but react. "I think the evidence should speak for itself." He whispered, turning to walk into the lab space that had held project silent sparrow, the confidence with which he moved a clear indication that he was already intimately acquainted with the space.

His heart fell when his response was met with silence and his mind was so distracted by the conversation that it took him a few moments to register what his eyes were telling him.

Gone.

Hiro stumbled to a halt, his figure small in the vacant space that surrounded him. The remaining portal that had not been damaged by the failed teleportation experiment was already gone!

"Damn it, Callaghan!" Hiro threw his head back and yelled, the expletive echoing through the vast empty lab space. "Why?!"

And with those bitter words he filled the space, with grief, rage and sheer desperation, the emotions so thick, their very presence was felt by everyone.

"Hiro…" His name rolled off of Honey Lemon's tongue.

"Hiro…" Her Latino accent lent it an interesting accent.

"Hiro, I've been meaning to ask." Only this time she did not leave her question unspoken. "What does Callaghan have to do with all of this?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I shall leave it here because this is where this chapter wants to end… I must say, Hiro is in a very weird head-space at the moment. Maybe it's contagious and he caught it from me? I mean, it had to go somewhere right?

**Author's Note:**

> The flow of this piece turned out to be very different to what I imagined it would be while playing around with this story in my head and I must say, I kind of like it. It's a bit different to my other story and I am not sure how frequent updates will be at this stage. What do you guys think?


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